Valentine's Rage
by Valentine'sMemory
Summary: Vincent Valentine has a daughter he kept secret for 17 years. When he finally revealed her existence, she is snatched. Who is a traitor and will he get her back alive? Rated M for sex, drugs and rock and roll. And most probably violence and gore
1. Protection

The lights flashed, and the music thumped. Bodies gyrated and grinded together. Bodily fluids were exchanged, and alcohol consumed in large quantities. And Taylor was in the midst of it. She was as high and as drunk as the rest of the pulsating group on the dance floor. She was tucked in a booth, straddling the lap of a bright red haired male who seemed to be older than the rest of the testosterone fuelled teenagers that populated that particular joint.

He was holding her wrists tight, pressing the inside to her hips so she couldn't slap him to ward him off her. But he got no complaints, not even when he forced his tongue into her mouth.

She opened her eyes when he released her wrists and pulled back from the kiss and threaded his fingers through her dyed blonde hair.

"How about, we take this back to mine?" He asked, and his head tilting gently and his electric blue gaze locked on her face. She shook her head, and arched her back to push her head up and resist the hand in her head.

"Nu-uh. I do not go home with strange and dangerous looking men." She teased, her index finger tapping his lip as she stood up.

He followed as she sashayed her way out the club, and once outside in the cool night air, he grabbed her wrist and spun her around again.

"Reno Sinclair. Turk. I'm not going to hurt you. Unless you're into that, of course." He purred, and pulled her close. His right arm threaded around her waist, and pulled her closer to him. She took his ID off him when he flipped it open to prove his identity. She raised a brow, and looked up at him.

His ID was enough for her. Before she knew it, her back was flat against the wall and they were kissing each other with a drunken eagerness. He pressed his body against hers, and his hands fumbled at the zip on her side that would enable him to peel the dress off her. She did it herself, and pushed the dress down. He paused, touching his forehead to hers and eyeing up the free breasts and the lacy hot pink knickers.

Throwing her back onto the bed with a laugh, he unbuckled his belt and threw the trousers aside. When they were both naked, he climbed over her and kissed her very softly. Stroking the high cheek bones, he thought she looked very, very familiar. Her hair was a soft blonde but clearly dyed, and her skin was as pale as a sheet of paper. She had soft, kissable lips with a lower lip bigger than the top and a bone structure that reminded him of something dangerous. He skimmed a finger over her high cheekbones, and gazed into the crimson eyes. He was missing something obvious, something right under his nose. But he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

She made a soft noise as he lowered himself down, kissing down her throat and nipping at the tender skin under her chin. She gripped his hair, pulling him back up for a kiss but a toned Turk like him could always over power a little girl like her. He tied her wrists with the scarf on his bedside, and kissed down between the valley of her breasts and to her pierced belly button. He tugged on it, and kissed lower down to the top of her groin.

She arched her back very gently and let him recapture her lips in a kiss more gently and tender than the first. He nudged her legs apart, settling himself between them. Pulling the hair band out, he let his bright red hair fall forwards over his shoulders to brush the darker tipped nipples.

He brought his hips forwards, and impaled himself inside her. She let out a moan, and seemed surprised at herself that she had responded so vocally to his touches. He grinned, and tilted his head.

"You love me, baby." He breathed as he started to pulsate and move his hips forwards, setting up a hard and fast rhythm. His movements rocked her body, and she threw her arms above her head to grip the rungs of the bed head. He lowered his head, and started to suckle hard on the nipple. His tongue pressed the nipple to the roof of his mouth, and the sensation sent shockwaves all through her body.

Her moans were music to his ears, and he delighted in drawing more and more out. She steeped her legs, and he pulled them up to rest them on his shoulders. Sweat slicked skin rubbed together as their bodies moved as one, and she clenched tightly around his throbbing length that was hidden within the velvet walls she held inside her.

They took the plunge to pleasure together, a feat that Reno was proud of. He gave a few more deep thrusts, drawing loud and drawn out moans from the beautiful creature underneath him.

She shuddered as he collapsed on her, and her little body twitched in aftershocks that clenched and tightened around him. The sensations pulled a thrumming noise from his chest that reverberated through her chest. He rolled off her, and lay beside her, his arm draped over her waist.

It was like that, that they fell asleep.

When she woke the next morning, the first thing she noticed was the tangy smell of weed and alcohol, mixed with aftershave and sex. Then, her hangover hit her with a sudden vengeance, and she whimpered out loud.

It took her several minutes before she plucked up the courage to open her eyes, and when she did, she was surprised to see she was alone. Looking to her right, she saw a set of draws with a shabby lamp on it, a glass of water and box of paracetamol. The room was a soft blue, and relatively cheery. The double bed sat in the centre of the wall furthest away from the door. A mahogany wardrobe sat beside the window, and the white curtains were pulled shut.

She sat upright slowly, holding her head and feeling very sorry for herself. She had a hicky around her nipple, and she touched it tenderly, thanking her lucky stars that her Father wouldn't see it. Reaching for the paracetamol, her fingers brushed paper and she pulled a letter close towards her. She didn't recognize the writing, but she did remember the man she had slept with the night before.

_Don't panic. You are safe. There is food in the fridge and you can use the shower if you wish. Thank you for last night. I doubt I'll ever forget it._

She stood up, and headed for the bathroom after knocking back two tablets. It was bliss to feel the hot water running over her body, washing off the sweat and the other bodily substances. She washed her hair and her body with what was available, and dried herself off.

As she was helping herself to toast, she heard the front door go. Reno looked very shocked to see her standing there. He had clearly fully expected her to leave and never contact him again. He was used to being screwed by a different chick every time he went out and never hearing from her again.

"Uh…you're still here?"

"Yeah. But I can go if you really want. I didn't mean to–" She paused and frowned, putting the glass down on the side.

He looked pale. He also had a very shocking black eye that he hadn't had the night before, and she didn't remember clocking him one. She chewed on her lip and hesitated.

"What happened to your face?" 

"I got punched at work. Turk's aren't entirely popular." He muttered, tenderly touching it. She knew it hurt, but his pride probably hurt more. She walked over to him and touched it gently, "Anyway. This guy got all irate because his daughter went out clubbing last night and hasn't come home. I told him to chill and stop being such an overprotective old prune and he decked me."

Taylor laughed and pulled herself up to sit on his kitchen table. Her head was tilted off to the side, reminding him of a small puppy. The expression on her face caught him off guard.

"What?"

"Nothing. I just…I hadn't realized how good looking you were, that's all."

He smiled, and sat beside her after raiding the fridge. He handed her a pasty, and they fell into silence as they ate.

His life was about to take a dangerous twist.


	2. Discovered

She was taken home an hour later, when Reno was heading back to work. It was a silent trip, but not an uncomfortable one. She gazed through the tinted windows as he took her through town. He had even taken her number, asked to meet again. Neither of them was willing to let go. Neither of them wanted to let go of the other.

She leant over, and they shared a quick, gentle kiss before she hopped out of the car. He drove off, and she was safe to let herself into the house without her Father realizing she had been with a guy. The naïve man thought she was a virgin.

Since she was alone, she striped the blonde from her hair and dressed in her day clothes which consisted of jeans, converses and a baggy t-shirt. She pulled on a leather jacket, and headed to her Father's favourite joint, Seventh Heaven.

He had told her she was never to go there, under any circumstances. But she needed her Daddy, and wanted to sit with him and feel safe again.

He was sat alone as usual. He was giving someone the evil eye as she slid into the chair next to him. He was clearly surprised to see her, and pushed her chair closer to the wall and sat in a way that she was completely blocked from view, but she chose not to comment on it.

"Afternoon, Dad." She murmured quietly and brushed her bangs out of her face. She looked so much like him that even an idiot would realize there was a blood tie between the two of them.

"Afternoon Taylor. Why are you here is something wrong?"

"No. I just. I don't know. I felt lonely at home. Besides, I haven't seen you for a week." She mumbled and flushed, realizing how pathetic she sounded.

Vincent Valentine was not a man for emotion. He hid his face behind a long crimson cloak that swept to his ankles, the high collar buckled protectively. His hair was worn long and unbrushed, and he had resorted to using a band of crimson fabric as a bandana to keep it out of his face. His face was very feminine and very beautiful. He was a heart breaker, and so very dangerous.

"I shall take you home as soon as I–"

"Vincent! Who's you're lady friend?" Came a breezy voice as a big busted woman bustled over. She had short brown hair, a kind face and the aura of someone who worried easily.

"Tifa, this is Taylor, Taylor, this is Tifa." Vincent introduced the two, and sat back. His metal gauntlet on his left arm chinked against the glass as he tapped it, and Taylor nodded her head in welcome, suddenly over come with shyness. Tifa smiled, and extended her hand. Taylor eyed the hand wearily, but took it.

"Nice to meet you Taylor. I'm Tifa Lockhart and I own this bar. Those two kids are Marlene and Denzel and that lump over there is Cloud." She smiled. At least she was attempting conversation. That was something at least.

"Tifa. This is my daughter." Vincent said quietly, looking into the golden liquid in his glass. Tifa spluttered on the soft drink she had been sipping, and stared at the young girl with wide eyes.

"Daughter…you mean…Lucrecia…?"

"No. She does not know her mother. Sephiroth…" Vincent trailed off, and inched round to sit beside his daughter but she was still very much shielded protectively.

"Oh. Well…it's nice to meet you, Taylor. It's a pleasure to meet you. Even though we didn't know you even existed."

Taylor turned her own crimson gaze on her father, the angry hurt showing clearly on her face. He was careful to ignore it, and sat up straighter as a small female dropped opposite them and gave his daughter the glare of death. Two men appeared, and Cloud joined them, all of them crowding around the table.

Vincent introduced them each in turn. Cid Highwind was a dirty-mouthed chain smoker who seemed to have a think for her father. His blonde hair wasn't as nice as Cloud's, but he seemed like a genuinely caring person. Barret looked a little scary with the weapon on his arm, and his very dark skin made him stand out. For an entire fifteen minutes, he didn't stop pestering her, and bombarded her with a million questions. Then, there was Yuffie. She had short black hair that was held back by a bandana, and had a face with an expression like she'd just sucked a lemon. She seemed to have it out for Taylor, and didn't have once nice word to say to her.

Her Father referred to them as Avalanche and it turned out that he was part of the Anti-Shinra terrorist group that seemed so highly spoken of. She was discovering a world that Vincent had kept hidden from her, and discovering her world was one he kept very well protected from his friends.

They were talking quietly with each other, talking about some secret operation they were planning. She didn't listen, just downed her Fathers drink and logged on to the internet on his phone while she sighed heavily. She was bored, but she loved being with her Father. Even if she was being ignored.

"Taylor?" She jumped and looked over, and realized Vincent had been trying to get her attention for a while now.

"Sorry. What was the question again?"

"Are you hungry? Tifa is going to get something rustled up. Do you want a steak?" She nodded, and he relayed it to Tifa who hurried into the kitchen, Yuffie following after her. Again, she became the centre of attention until the gunman bristled at her side.

Cloud looked round, and she looked up to see a man staring intently at her. He looked fairly interested, and had been talking incessantly on his phone for most of her duration in the bar. Vincent had clearly noticed it, because he suddenly gripped his daughters arm, pulled her to her feet and forcefully dragged her out of the bar and into the private hallway that lead to the kitchen were Yuffie was audibly bitching about Taylor and Tifa was preparing the meal and not really listening to the Wutainian Ninja.

All convocation stopped when they heard Vincent storm up the stairs, Cid and Barret darting along behind them and Cloud wandered into the kitchen to grab his faithful sword.

"Dad! Dad, ow, you're hurting me!" The girl protested, trying to peel his fingers off. The Crimson Gunman wasn't listening however and wrenched her closer, pulling her up the stairs and into the nearest room which happened to be Marlene's. He sat her on the bed, slammed the door and locked it.

"Vincent! What the hell! That's your Daughter you crackpot!" Cid called, and reached for the door but Vincent gripped his wrist and pulled it back.

"Go patrol under the window. Barret stay here and do not let anyone go in." He instructed and went to the kitchen to peer out the window.

Taylor stood up when she heard the door lock, and tried the window as she could hear her Father talking. But it was locked. When Vincent was gone, she banged on the door and shook the handle, trying to open it.

"I'm sorry kid. Vincent's orders." Came Barret's voice and she stepped back, staring at the door.

She was in there for two hours, huddled on the floor by the window and leant on the wall when Vincent returned for her. He scooped her up when he realized she was asleep, and pulled his cloak tightly around her little body to shield her from the view of prying eyes. But he feared it was too late.

"What happened earlier, Vincent?" Tifa hissed, careful to lower her voice so she didn't wake the sleeping Valentine.

"Spies. I am guessing they were sent by none other than Professor Hojo. This is the reason I did not reveal her being to you. I did not want my enemies finding out I have Daughter. She is surely in danger." He responded, and Tifa nodded understandingly.

"I'm sorry Vincent, really I am. I didn't mean to put her in danger."

"Do not worry. She unknowingly put herself in danger by coming here. I stupidly put her in danger by not taking her home when she first arrived." He looked down inside his cloak at the sleeping girl. She had angled her body towards him and gripped the leather and held on tight. He sighed, looking at his friend, "I just hope I can protect her until they get bored of trying to reach her."

"C'mon Vincent. You don't know if they're trying to get to her. You don't know if they're going to want her. It's all speculation."

"I know it is very likely. I am what they want. They will take her, Tifa. She is young, vulnerable. She does not have a Demon inside of her to lend her its power. I have taught her to use weapons but I do not think it will help her."

"Don't worry Vincent. Just concentrate on spending time with your Daughter and stop shielding her from the world. Now your secret is out…you can start enjoying your time being a Dad." Tifa said wisely. He nodded, kissed her cheek goodbye and walked out into the crisp night air.

Checking Taylor was safely tucked away, he felt something rouse in the back of his mind. Chaos had been unusually quiet of late, but seemed to shift himself now after watching Vincent's freak out that lasted two hours.

_Better now? I think you scared poor Tifa senseless after dragging your own child upstairs and locking her away like she's some animal._

'I had to. She was in danger.' Vincent huffed internally, his face hardening into a scowl as he checked on the girl once again.

_Something is coming Valentine. _

'I know. They saw her. Professor Hojo now knows she exists. We shall have to be extra vigilant.'

Vincent sighed as he walked along, more highly strung than usual. He saw a threat in everyone, every passer by or tramp. He pulled Taylor closer to him, and hurried home.

Once she was settled on her bed, he relaxed, pulling the covers up and over her after removing her shoes. He stroked her cheek with his human hand, keeping his touches soft and very light. She was so beautiful, but so precious too him. He couldn't bare to loose her. He was angry that she had come to the bar and jeopardized the safe world he had created for her. But he knew he couldn't blame her. He knew it wasn't her fault.

He stared at her, and realized how much he had missed out on. When she was born and her Mother ran away, he instantly started carving out a safe future. He kept her well hidden, never spoke about her and never aroused suspicion. He had missed all the important things. He had been there to celebrate, but somehow, keeping her wrapped in bubble wrap had always seemed more important than walking or talking. And now he seriously regretted it.

He walked to the window, bolting it shut in four places and pulled the curtains shut. He kissed her temple very gently, and shut her bedroom door very quietly.

Operation keep Taylor safe was underway.


	3. Followed

_The third installment of Valentine's Rage. I am still continuing with Amethyst Dawn. I thought up this chapter while at Work, and _had _to write it as soon as I got in. So here it is. If you have ideas, suggestions or requests, just lemme know. Read, Rate, Review, LOVE! On with the Shoooow!_

...

The shrill beeping of her alarm woke her up the next day, and she groaned out loud before slamming the snooze button and rolling over to sleep for another five minutes. This happened five times until Vincent came in, lifted her out of bed, put her in the bath and turned the shower on.

She squealed, and glared at her father. He had a smirk on his face, but she didn't return the humor.

"You REALLY need to learn how to be gentle." She snapped and clambered out. She dried herself and shut herself in her bedroom to prepare herself for the day ahead.

"Skirt down." Vincent instructed without even turning around. She was dressed for Midgar College, an establishment Taylor was forced to attend.

"I'm not wearing a skirt." She retorted as she sat at the table, spooning Coco Pops into her mouth while flicking on the TV and fixing her gaze on it. Vincent was spooning pasta into a container, and finding a bag to shove some fruit, a cereal bar, crisps in. He also added a cake in, which he had surprisingly made himself.

She finished her breakfast and took the bag he handed her as he bustled her out of the door, complaining her skirt was still too short. As usual, she waved off his complaints and danced out of the door.

She stuffed the back in her back pack, turned on her music and played it at full volume so she couldn't hear anything else. Even so, she still got the distinct feeling that she was being followed. As she walked along, the feeling got stronger, but suddenly, her arm was grabbed and she was spun round. She found herself face to face with a red headed Turk.

"Reno!" She took out the music and her entire face lit up. She watched him, and noticed the black man hovering behind, "Who's your friend?"

"This is Rude, he's my work partner. We've been good friends for years now, yo."

She nodded, and smiled to Rude who nodded politely. His head looked temptingly shiny, and he wore his uniform as he was supposed too, unlike Reno who wore it scruffy. He wore a pair of sunglasses, even though it was cloudy and threatening to rain.

"Anyway. You didn't call back yesterday; I thought I had pissed you off."

"No. Sorry about that, things got a little busy. But I am definitely all yours now. What did you want, anyway?"

"I just wanted to know if you were doing anything tonight? 'Cause I know a great restaurant in the centre of town if you wanted to go…." He suddenly trailed off, seeming a little shy. A huge smile spread over her face, and she nodded while gazing intently at him.

"I would love that, Reno. Pick me up later?" She asked and was surprised to see he actually looked relieved. He smiled, kissed her and walked off with his friend, chattering like an excited school girl.

Even though Reno had gone, she still felt like she was being followed, and watched. It was a feeling so intense, that she left college halfway and ran home. She assumed her Father wasn't in, as he was usually at Seventh Heaven. So why did she hear noises from upstairs.

She held her breath, and leant her head against the wall, sliding along it to reach the kitchen. Just as she stepped through the door frame, a leather clad hand clamped down over her mouth. She instantly reacted to it, and tried clawing the crap out of it again to get it off her. A flash of gold caught her attention, and a gentle grip pried her hands away. It was then that a scent that could only be described as a hint of sulphur hit her, and she relaxed into the broad chest behind her.

"Shh. Do not make a sound." Came the whisper right in her ear, and her father pressed her against the wall. There was a faint rustle, and something silver and very dangerous glinted in his hand.

It was beautiful, and it always caught the breath in her throat. It was heavy, and uniquely three barreled with a three headed dog hanging off it. Cerberus was a very dangerous and very powerful weapon. She had used it only once, when she was saving her Father's life. But even being near it sent chills down her spine. It radiated as much power as Vincent did himself.

He pushed her shoulder in reassurance before his form melted. She froze, chewing her lip when a pair of golden eyes stared right back at her. There had been incidents before when Chaos had hurt her, and where he had refused to give Vincent back to her until she had screamed blue murder. He slunk out of the room, and shortly after she heard a loud curse from Chaos followed by two thuds.

He returned, holding his leg and Vincent surged forwards to regain control. He cursed again, and swiped up his phone. Looking down, she saw a stab wound to his thigh and flinched when she saw the blood.

"Dad?"

He ignored her, talking to someone on the phone instead and sat down on the chair. She watched him, and shivered, looking to the ceiling. He had killed them, she knew he had. She knew that if she went upstairs, she would find two bodies.

He hung up, and bent over, peeling the fabric back to check out his leg. She winced again, and inched forwards, putting her hand on his.

"Daddy?" That stopped him, and he turned his gaze on her. For the first time, she saw her Father show emotion. Fear, pain and something she couldn't quite pick out. She ripped the fabric around the wound, and ordered him to remove his trousers, which he did so without protest. She fetched the first aid kit, and started to clean the wound and the area around it, "What's going on Dad?" She asked quietly, jumping when he banged his hand on the table. He shook his head, looking almost ashamed at himself for something.

"Years ago, I was experimented on by a man called Professor Hojo. Technically, I am dead, as you know. He was the one to shoot me, kill me and give me Chaos. Now, he wants me back for more experiments. But he cannot get me. He can however, get the next best thing. Which is you."

"Me? I don't have a demon or…or whatever."

"No. But you are my Daughter. As far as he knows, I only have one child." Her head snapped up, and she stared at him incredulously. She always thought she was an only child, and liked it that way.

He launched into his long and tragic tale, which had her so absorbed that she didn't notice Avalanche filling the room. When he finished, she jerked herself back into reality and looked around the room. None of them were surprised, they all knew.

"Vincent. Was it him?" Cloud asked, watching the Crimson Clad Father as Tifa knelt down, looking over the wound and nodding in approval as Taylor dressed her father's wound and cared for him.

"It was not. They were his Soldier's though. The man in the bar last night told him, I am guessing."

"We dealt with him though. He's dead, Vincent. He can't report to Hojo."

"No. But he was on the phone for a majority of our conversation. He heard us talking about Taylor's paternity. I am sure he was on the phone to Hojo and reporting what he heard."

It fell silent, and Taylor stood, handing her Father a clean pair of trousers which he slipped on tenderly. She watched him, and noticed Barret and Cid slipping out the house with two bags flung over their shoulders. Bags with bodies in.

She slipped out of the room and went to her room. It was trashed. Everything was all over the floor, her jewelry was broken and the artwork and pictures on the wall had been torn and slashed. Her clothes were strewn about the floor and torn, leaving her with the clothes in her Father's wardrobe. The mattress had been torn, and the pillows were slit which sent feathers flying everywhere. It was rather clichéd. The drapes were ripped and there was only one curtain left hanging by the smashed window, glass scattered around the window. Bits of make up and accessories were strewn everywhere, and shredded paper coated every surface where books, magazines and portfolio's of coursework had been destroyed.

She sighed, dressing and getting herself ready to go out with Reno. She stared round her bedroom again, and Tifa came to her side, a gentle and set a comforting hand settled on her shoulder.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah. Peachy."

Tifa sighed and stepped into the room, assessing the damage. She picked up a few things and set them on the dresser in a futile attempt to make the room look a little better. She looked back at the black haired girl and gave her a reassuring smile.

"It'll be okay, honestly. We'll keep you safe and sort things out, and we'll make sure that Hojo never–"

"No offence Tifa, but that doesn't help. You see? Look at my room. Look at what happened to Dad and Chaos."

Tifa looked round again, and noted that the wallpaper itself had been torn. The room was a write off.

"Come round ours, stay at Seventh Heaven. We have the room for you, and you can stay there until your room is sorted out." She said softly, and then eyed the girl suddenly, "Are you going out?"

"Yeah. Date." She muttered and turned away while grabbing a bag and throwing in her vital things before she walked downstairs. Her boots clicked on the wood, and the voices in the kitchen died into nothing. She pulled open the front door, and let it click shut behind her.

Vincent appeared from the kitchen, looking at Tifa with alarm on his face. The whole situation had Vincent in turmoil. His guard was dropped, the wall he had spent so long building had crumbled around him.

"Where has she gone?"

"She said she's got a date. Leave her, Vincent. She knows what she's doing."

"If Hojo comes after her, she cannot protect herself. She is not armed, Tifa. She does not know how to efficiently fight with her hands. And even if she did know, she could not ward of Hojo and his Soldier's." Vincent looked panicked, and Tifa felt her heart breaking.

"Vincent. When the two men don't report back, Hojo will know they're dead, and will know that they failed and you are onto him. He won't try anything now. He would be stupid too."

Vincent said nothing, but wrenched open the door. Taylor was standing on the path, talking to one of her college friends and copying something down. She didn't looked troubled, or upset, and seemed to be perfectly fine. But he couldn't rest.

"Yuffie. I want to make sure she is safe."

Yuffie nodded and slipped out of the back door. She was going to follow the young Valentine's girl and make sure that she was safe. If anything happened, or she felt like she needed help, she would ring Vincent or Cloud and they would go and find her immediately. She followed the girl to the park and leapt nimbly into a tree to watch. The girl was on a bench and was on her phone. She almost fell out of the tree when she saw just _who_ Taylor's date for the evening was.

She ripped her phone out of her pocket, stabbed in Tifa's number, and held it to her ear.

"Oh, MY GOD. You'll _never _guess who Vince's 'little Angel' is dating!" She breathed and leant forwards.

"Do tell Yuffie."

"Only like, the scummiest, most annoying, disgusting, and whoreish–"

"YUFFIE! Who is it?" Was Cloud's irritated shout, and she realised she was on loudspeaker. Which meant Vincent was listening in.

"Um…well. It's none other than Reno Sinclair. You know, the Turk."

There was a squealing sound, and Yuffie jerked back quick enough to fall out of the tree. She sat sprawled on the floor. She watched Taylor as she kissed Reno softly and then as the two of them walked off arm in arm.

But she wasn't so amazed by the Turk dating Valentine's Daughter that she was distracted enough not to notice the three men creeping along behind the couple. They wouldn't approach while there was a Turk with her, but once she was alone she was in severe danger.

She called Cid this time, and the man picked up with a bellowing 'Hello' that partially deafened the Ninja.

"Cid? We have a problem. Hojo is more persistent than I thought. He's got Soldiers crawling all over the place. Since she's with Reno, they won't touch her. But when she's alone…"

"How many?"

"Six so far. There are probably more."

"Keep tailing her for now. Vincent's on his way."


	4. A Whole Other Problem

_This one isn't so great. I wrote it at about 1 in the morning and it took me only a couple of hours to do. This story seems to be giving me the most "muse" so it seems to be the one I am working on the most. I already have Chapter 5 in formation, which I will do by morning if I don't get over this Sugar Rush... Read, Rate, Review, LOVE! _

...

The restaurant was surrounded. Hojo's Soldiers were all in position, ready to strike when she was alone. But they weren't going to dispatch of them now. Not when it was so busy.

It was the Light Festival, an annual celebration that saw the entire city out on the streets. Everything was brightly coloured, and everything was loud. It was a festival to celebrate good health and safety after a strange rain magically cured Geostigma and Sephiroth's downfall. It wasn't unusual for people to recognize Avalanche and their efforts in that dark time, and it wasn't unusual for people to start randomly thanking them.

That was the reason the restaurant was nearly deserted. Taylor, Reno and two other couples were the only people in there, bar the staff who were clearly itching to get outside and join the celebrations. Taylor was watching people walk past, and Reno was studying the menu, desperately looking for something he _knew_. Damn fancy food names!

She looked back at him, to find him staring at her. He had a strange look on his face, like he was constipated almost. She looked from to the window and back again, turning her head away from him slightly so her face was angled away. He was making her extremely paranoid.

"What?"

"You look, really familiar. Like a man I used to know."

"Really?" She didn't know whether to be insulted or not. After all, he had just said she reminded him of a man he used to know.

"I don't know if you heard of him. He's a part of that Anti-Shinra terrorist group, the one's who helped with that whole Remnant incident three years ago."

"Vincent Valentine?"

"Yeah! Him. You really look like him, yo! Well, besides the "if you come near me I'll eat you" thing he has going on."

"I know, he seems scary. But he's actually a sweet heart behind all that. It's just a mask to stop him getting hurt again, like that bitch Lucrecia did." She speared a tube of pasta and popped it in her mouth, stabbing the food like she had some sort of vengeance against carbohydrates.

"How do you know all that stuff about him, yo?" As she gave her answer, he was chewing on a piece of salmon.

"He's my Dad. I know him better than anyone else." He spluttered fish everywhere, including all over her. Her head jerked back on reflex, and she immediately began wiping down her face. Yes, they had exchanged other bodily substances, but half masticated fish all over her face was something that she wouldn't like even in the deepest of relationships.

"YOU are Vincent Valentine's child? But…Sephiroth…How…?"

"Sephiroth is a part of Dad's story that I don't know yet. A part of his history that so far remains hidden. When I was about 13, he told me about Lucrecia and what she had done, but he hadn't told me anything about a child. A few days ago, he told me the rest of the story, but I don't know the rest regarding Sephiroth. He told me the main story, but as with any story, there are a lot of different stories to be told to make the main one make sense."

"Deep."

"Thank you."

Reno could see it now. She had a lot of Vincent's features, and she definitely had his eyes. She acted like him in some ways, and he had detected a hint of sulphur on her clothes and in her hair when they had spent the night together.

She carefully stabbed some pasta tubes again and looked out the window, watching drunken festival workers stumble up the street, laughing at something that was only funny when you were inebriated.

She checked her phone, not surprised to find a message from her Dad, asking if she was okay. She replied that she was fine and ordered him to stop fussing, before she gazed up. A black haired man in a suit had walked in, a small little dot on his forehead. He seemed very stoic, but his brown eyes were deceptively warm and kind.

A very cute blonde haired woman followed him, with childlike features and the expression similar to a baby deer caught in the full beam of a cars lights. She had eyes similar to Reno's, but not as blue or piercing, and she looked like butter wouldn't melt in her mouth. But Taylor knew they were dangerous, and every fibre in her body screamed at her to run away, to leave the place and let her Father protect her. It seemed his distrust of the Shinra Employee's had rubbed off on her.

Reno followed her gaze after he caught flicker of unease pass over his date's face, and spun round to face her again with wide eyes.

"Shit, this isn't good yo."

"Why? Are you supposed to be working?"

"No. But I messed with Tseng's coffee machine and he can be a real bastard when he's getting his own back. I mean, sure he won't hurt me here…but he can be like an embarrassing father. Real embarrassing. The kind of embarrassing that will seriously hurt my reputation."

"Reputation? Whatever you say."

"Have they seen me? Maybe they won't notice me."

"With that hair? You're being a little optimistic there."

He just glared at her and ducked his head, shoveling a load of baby potatoes in his mouth, just as the black haired man who he refered too as Tseng, dropped in the chair beside him.

"Reno. With a girl. There's a surprise." Tseng's voice was level and velvety, but his eyes bore into her skull. Obviously he was thinking exactly what Reno had been thinking about fifteen minutes ago. And the look of mistrust and unease on her face was throwing him off guard. Surely a girl dating a Turk would be more relaxed around the Shinra workers?

"Back off, yo. It's not what you think."

The blonde gently sat herself down at the head of the table, placing her hands between the two plates on the table. She studied her nail, complaining it was misshaped before commenting on the colour of the walls. Taylor appreciated her efforts not to stare or make a scene.

"Aren't you going to introduce us?" Tseng watched Reno, who had a very immature scowl on his face. He glared at his superior, and looked to Taylor who had reached for her phone and was now texting away. She'd pushed her plate towards Reno, seemingly loosing her appetite.

"This is Taylor, she's my date for this evening, which I hasten to add has now been ruined. Taylor, this is Tseng, my superior, and Elena who is pretty much my Mother."

She nodded once, and he sat back in his chair. Another date ruined by his work life. He looked at the table, using his forks to make a tipi out of green beans on his plate, looking dejected.

"SOLDIER are using this restaurant as a base for the evening. Lend them your assistance if they ask for it."

"Why are they coming? Things seem to be going well."

"For now. We have had a few petty incidents already, and people are starting to get very drunk. If a brawl breaks out, it will very rapidly escalate into a major incident. We will need their brute strength if that happens, which we expect it will."

"Fine." He looked to his date, who seemed to be searching out the window. He guessed she would be leaving soon, and he couldn't blame her. But he didn't understand why she was so uneasy around the Turk's.

They lapsed into a strained silence which was broken than a very hyper Zack Fair. He dropped beside Taylor, who tensed immediately and looked like she was eyeing the door, assessing her chances. When Angeal and Genesis walked in, she looked slightly apprehensive, but it was Sephiroth's arrival that had her squirming.

She instantly swiped up her phone and looked down, giving Zack the glare of death when she realized he was trying to read over her shoulder. It was chaos. Angeal was trying to control Zack and stop him stealing food from her plate and ping it across the room to try and start a food fight, Elena was discussing tactics with Genesis who had perched on her side of the table, and Reno and Tseng were arguing about something she didn't quite make out.

After five minutes of feeling very uneasy and very trapped, and five minutes of desperately hiding her face from Sephiroth, Vincent walks in. She breathed a sigh of relief and stood up so suddenly, Genesis whirled round and gripped her throat, pinning her to the wall. He'd shoved her back suddenly; she hadn't had time to think or move her limbs, meaning she was now partially sat on Zack who was staring up at the auburn headed man with his mouth open.

He was more shocked that Vincent had the audacity to hold a gun to Genesis' head. He was glaring at the SOLIDER, the rage very visible on his face, tinted with anxiety only a parent could feel.

"Now, Vincent, don't do anything stupid." Angeal warned, holding his hand up to the Crimson dressed gunslinger.

"Get. Your. Hands. OFF. Her." He warned. Genesis, true to his slightly mental nature, looked to Vincent with a sneer on his face.

"What would you care, Valentine?"

"Get away from my daughter. NOW, Genesis."

It takes a few seconds, but when his words registered, Genesis dropped the girl like a stone. She gasped for breath, hitting the floor hard and fell to her side, her cheek resting on Zack's boot. He jerked back and stood beside Angeal, not wanting to irritate Vincent any more.

The Gunman moved to crouch at her head and, using his flesh hand, heaved her upright. She was shaking, and her breathing sounded like something was rattling around in her lungs. She was clutching her throat, and bent over double. Vincent glared at Genesis from over the top of his cloak. Genesis stepped back, holding his hands up.

"Calm down. I did not realize she was your daughter. It was a reaction purely a reflex. I did not mean to harm her."

Vincent said nothing, but holstered his weapon and took her out as quick as a flash. Reno sat still, watching her go and then looked sadly at her empty chair before glaring at Genesis. It was the most chaotic a restaurant had ever been.

"Nice one, Genesis. Bravo." He snapped and stormed out, leaving the group shocked and very surprised. That was completely out of character. Sephiroth was staring at the door, watching them leave. He had a sister. And she had been so close to him, just a couple of meters away.

Vincent had managed to get Taylor home without any troubles, and very softly set her on the couch. She was still rasping, and she was still trembling. Vincent shut the door softly, and came face to face with Tifa.

"What happened? Did Reno hurt her?"

"No. Genesis had her against the wall. She moved too quickly and he assumed she was going to attack him."

"Is she okay?"

"I think she will be. She is a little shaken up, but she seems otherwise fine." He replied, and made into the kitchen.

Taylor listened to them discuss her freedom, and whether they wanted it taken away from her. They were scared she was going to get hurt. She was scared she'd be trapped inside all day until the Professor gave up and left her alone.

Avalanche left after a decision was reached, and Vincent returned to his daughter. They curled up together to watch old reruns of Scrubs and Two And A Half Men. They were wrapped in their own little bubble, and Taylor was glad to have the man to herself for once. He was stroking her hair with her flesh hand, and kept getting up to make drinks or get snacks.

Their bliss was shattered when Sephiroth let himself in.


	5. Chapter 5

_Taylor coughed as she pushed herself into a sitting position, wincing as she moved. She had been in a rickety old house having been shadowing her father on one of his assignments. He had taken the outside while sending her inside, knowing she could fully handle whatever was thrown at her. She had been clearing the house, looking for a kidnapped teen when the floor had given way under her and sent her flying down a strange tunnel under the house. She landed on top of the rubble, with the rest of it falling on top of her._

"_Taylor? TAYLOR?!" Her father shouted. She looked down, realizing her leg was trapped under a lump of concrete and her arm was stuck between two wooden beams that had toppled sideways, "TAYLOR!"_

_A thud and disturbance of rubble told her that her father had landed in the tunnel and had begun searching for her. _

"_Dad?" She whimpered, trying to fight back the tears. Her leg hurt and her arm was twisted awkwardly, "Daddy!" _

_He stopped and whirled around. For a split second, he hesitated before rushing to her side and crouching down, gently cupping her cheek and smoothing her hair from her face. She shivered, her free hand holding onto his. _

"_You are soaking." He muttered, tucking her hair behind her ear, "Hold still, I am going to get this off you." He bent forwards, kissing her forehead. He stood, but she clung onto him for a fraction of a second before letting go. He bent, and in one fluid movement he plucked the concrete block off her leg and tossed it aside like he was pulling a pillow off her. _

_He eased the beams apart so she could pull her arm free, and then scooped her up and gently cradled her to his chest like she was a child again. Using Chaos' strength, he sprung back up to the house and gently carried her out into the open. She twisted herself so she could bury her face in his shoulder and inhale the ever familiar scent of her father. For a moment, she felt like she was a little girl again and she thought back to the times when her Father returned from an assignment and swept her into his arms. _

"_I'm sorry." She whispered and tucked her head down so he couldn't see her face. He tightened her arms around her, and stopped next to a rock that sat next to a running stream. He sat on it so he could rock her. He was expressing his emotions as freely as Tifa did, yet she was the only one who actually got to see it. _

"_You do not need to say sorry." He murmured and tilted her head back. He visibly winced at the sight of her face. She was dusty and dirty, and had an angry bruise spreading out from a deep cut on her temple, "It was not your fault." _

_He cleaned her up at the stream, sitting her on the side of the water while he used a strip of his cloak to wipe the dirt and dried blood off her. _

"_Come on, lets get you home." He whispered, sliding his hands under her again. She clung onto him while he walked her back. He wasn't saying anything, but she saw the anger and disgust on his face. It was the look she had seen thousands of times; every time she got hurt, he had a look of blame on his face. _

_He pointed the blame at himself. Every time she got hurt helping him, or when he wasn't around, he tended to blame himself and even punish himself. He would shut himself in his room and starve himself for days before suddenly and randomly snapping out of it. _

_It always scared her. Last time, he had sat in the chair in the corner of the room for two weeks. She hadn't been able to bring him out of it, and he had declined all food, but he hadn't lost the glassy, vacant expression on his face. _

"_Dad?" He didn't look down, just stared ahead of her, his jaw clenched. She tugged on his leather bodysuit, but he still didn't acknowledge her. She braced her hand against his chest and shoved as hard as she could. She toppled out of his arms and hit the floor, her broken arm landing under her and making her curl up in a ball with a loud cry. _

"_Taylor? Oh Gaia I am sorry."  
_

"_It was my fault Dad." She muttered, using her good hand to push herself up and turn her head to face him. He looked like he was ready to cry, "None of this was your fault. The house wasn't your fault; how were you to know it was built over some kind of huge cave. There was nothing to tell you that the floor was going to give. I'll heal, I'll recover soon. Please, don't blame yourself." _

"_But I–"_

"_You can't protect me from everything Dad." _

Vincent stood up, and immediately stepped in front of Taylor, who was curled up on the sofa. She reflexively brushed the hand shaped bruise on her throat, and stood beside her father.

For the first time, she got a good look at her half-brother. He had long silver hair, and he looked like his father. His emerald eyes bore into her skull and his leather gloved hand rested on the hilt of a very dangerous looking sword. He was tall, and his lean body was hidden by a thick leather coat. He certainly looked very dark and foreboding.

"So. This is my Sister. I have to say, you've caused quite a stir."

"Leave, Sephiroth. I do not want any trouble."

"I am not here to cause trouble. I am here to see my Father and my blood sibling you failed to tell me about."

The accusation burned in his eyes, and he stared solidly at Vincent. To the gunslingers credit, he didn't even flinch. He just accepted it and returned the gaze. The arm with the gauntlet was braced across her front, and he was slowly wrapping his cloak around her to pull her closer.

"Her name is Taylor. She is seventeen and she is your half-sister." He paused for a moment, as if in thought and then straightened from his fighting pose, "There. I have told you. Now you can leave us in peace."

Jack Knoxville stumbled onto the screen, drawing Sephiroth's attention as the _Dumbass_ cast member attempted to wrestle a heavy weight champion. Sephiroth looked back at the girl, his eyes roaming over her as he made a mental assessment. He stepped forwards and offered her one of the gloved hands. She took it, and he shook it, surprisingly gentle with her. He never took his eyes off her.

Which is why Taylor and Sephiroth ended up opposite each other at the oak dining table, Vincent sitting at the head and talking. He told them everything, until it was starting to clear up in their heads. Then, he left them alone. Sephiroth talked first, and Taylor followed, both of them bombarding each other with questions. Secretly, Sephiroth liked the idea of having someone to protect and look after. She was small, weak and vulnerable. He could convince them all that he wasn't just a brute.

They watched TV until Taylor fell asleep, and her father had to take her to bed. When she was out of the way and unable to hear, Vincent filled him in on Professor Hojo and the attempts to catch her. Sephiroth made a note to inform Rufus Shinra, which made Vincent very uneasy.

"She needs Shinra to look out for her. At least let Tseng know. Then he can inform the rest of the Turk force and they can look out for anything suspicious." Sephiroth suggested, keeping his voice calm and level to soothe the crimson clad gunslinger.

"I do not want Shinra to find out about this. It is the last thing she needs."

"The last thing she needs? Or the last thing _you_ need."

"It does not matter. We do not want Shinra crawling around the place. A huge SOLDIER or Turk force protecting the house will make him even more desperate. He will grab her elsewhere, and he will kill people to get to her. Do you want a massacre on your hands?"

"I don't. But are you leaving her safety to chance for the sake of a few SOLDIER's?"

"He will be easier to kill if we leave her as she is."

"But _she _is easier to kill if you leave her as she is."

"She has Avalanche to help her. They are very capable."

"The Turk's are capable, Vincent. They are the official lawmen of this entire city. If anything happens, you will _want_ them looking out for Hojo and his men."

"No, I do not want them to look out for her. I do not want them in our business. You know I do not trust them."

"You were a Turk once before, remember? You know how they work. You know they will not hurt you."

"It is late. I wish to retire to bed."

They stared at each other for a while, and Sephiroth stood, looking to the wall mounted clock. He excused himself, but he would be telling Tseng. Something like this needed a Turk's attention.

"I'm sure we'll be seeing you again soon then, Father."

...

She wandered along slowly, dragging her heels. Her father considered slashing her social life, but he still made her go to work. She kicked at a stone, rather childishly. She huffed and pulled her bag back on her shoulder, dreading the next ten hours. She sighed again, slowing her walk to a halt so she could fasten the apron around her waist.

She hated her job. It paid though, and it meant she could get what she needed without questions from her father. No having to ask him to get tampons every month. Vincent was not the kind of man one could talk to regarding periods.

As she neared the restaurant, she sighed heavily and her shoulders sagged. The olive green paint on the front was peeling, and the sign was painted in yellow, very Old West Style. The windows were dirty, but it was very popular with the men who wished to drink and scream at the TV.

It was usually very busy. The Manager paid well, trying to keep the girls there. He only hired the pretty ones, to keep the customers flowing. Some of the girls gave 'extras' to the male punters, and some flatly refused. It was a game that kept the men coming, kept the men returning for more. Taylor was one of the few girls with a shred of dignity. She worked, she waited on the patrons, she served food and cleaned tables. That was it.

As she thought, the shift sucked. Ten hours of being eyed up, getting her ass groped and having tips thrust at her in return for "favours" from the drunken men. She understood that she was in the seedier part of town but in no way did she look like any of the women working the streets.

She left as quick as possible, stopped at the local convenience store. She knew her father probably had someone tailing her, so she wasn't too fussed about her own safety. Not until a group of men surrounded her as she crossed the road to head down a smaller side street which lead to her own road.

It was dark. Shinra was more concerned with rebuilding homes, and buildings. The street lights weren't on yet, meaning the roads were dark. She had already sent a text ahead to let him know she was on her way back home.

"Surprise." Came the deep voice of a heavily armed male. All of the men around her were very big built, and all armed with various different weapons. They had clearly anticipated running into her pissed off Daddy and had made sure they were well prepared for such an incident.

She stepped backwards, and a hand clamped down over her mouth. She was too scared to scream or do anything. She couldn't even move to protect herself. Fear gripped her body, paralyzed her. She was paralyzed until gunshots rang out. She snapped out of it, and while she was hogtied, began wriggling and fighting back furiously.

She felt something prick her thigh, and felt the tell tale blanket of sleep drift over her. She fought to keep herself awake, but the last thing she saw before the sedative took control of her mind, was the rear lights of a truck as she was stuffed into the back. And then nothing.

...

Vincent paced, and the man cowered into the corner. He was shaking in his anger, and was subjecting the scout to verbal abuse and a few slaps in his rage.

"You were supposed to protect her!" Vincent roared, his leather hand snaking out to backhand the male who was flinching away.

"There…there were too many of them, Mr. Valentine Sir." He whimpered, almost bowing to him.

"Why did it not occur to you, to ring for help? Why did it not occur to you, to trail them while help came?"

Tifa was silent, standing in the middle of the living room with Cloud at her side. Yuffie was perched on the back of the couch, and Barret was in a chair, suspiciously eyeing the Turks who had just rolled up. Cloud was keeping a watchful eye on Reno, who was strangely subdued.

"What will he do to her, Vince?" Tifa asked quietly, and stepped forwards to set her hand on Vincent's shoulder. The action calmed him down, and he seemed to relax a little. The man whimpered and ran out of the room, with his tail between his legs. He looked at Tifa, and she caught the pain on his expression, clear as day.

"I do not know. But I do know that if we do not find her soon…he will kill her. And without a Demonic presence residing within her, I will loose her forever."

Tifa rubbed his arm comfortingly, and Sephiroth stepped into the room, looking a little dishevelled and tired. It was two in the morning, and everyone had been called in. Even Rufus Shinra himself had turned up, but it was morbid curiosity that lead him to take a special interest in the case. He was very much aware of Sephiroth's paternity, but he had never known that Vincent had another child, a girl, one he clung to like she was a life raft.

He stood in silence as Avalanche made their plan. Vincent was no help, just cursed and threatened to unleash Chaos on people if they messed up. His voice was tinted with Chaos'. It was clear his anger was allowing the beast to surge forwards. Tseng helped with the plans, and Sephiroth put his voice in.

"Why do you care? You barely know her. You did not seem pleased to discover her existence last night." Vincent said spitefully, his crimson glare turned on Sephiroth.

"I was shocked. I didn't expect to find that you had hidden a girl from me for 17 years. And it doesn't matter if I don't know her. I don't know a lot of the people I work to protect. I still help out."

"This is just a job to you?"

"In a way, yes. _I_ won't let my feelings cloud me and hamper me."

Vincent just glared, and Tifa pushed him out of the room. The Turk's went off to try and find out where the nutty Professor had taken the girl so they could storm the building and take her back. They were going to try and trace her phone, see where the trail lead them. If not, they'd use eye witness reports.

"What could he want with her? He has done his experiments on me – I was a failed experiment. Or so he says. But what could he possibly want with my daughter?"

"Nothing. He's forcing his past on you. He's trying to force the pain on you again. He can't get you, you're too strong. But, he went one better and took someone who can't fight back. Yes, he could've chosen…Yuffie, or Cloud. Even me or Barrett. But, since she is your biological relation, he knew it would affect you more." Vincent looked slightly blank and stared at her with glassy eyes, "Think of it as an experiment from a distance."

"I was supposed to protect her. I am her father. I should be able to look after her. I cannot bear to think that she is somewhere in pain and it is because I was the one who failed her." He sat on the remains of his daughter's bed, and his shoulders slumped miserably. Tifa stood in front of him, and sighed gently. Crouching down, she took his hand and patted it gently.

"You weren't to know, Vincent. You can't see the future. You weren't to know it would happen tonight. In fact, you weren't to know it would happen at all."

He slumped again, and a tortured pain flashed across his face. He had lost the only thing in his life that was good and pure. She was innocent. In his mind, he pictured himself as an empty, black hole, a bottomless pit of despair. She was the shining white light in his life; the only thing he had left that wasn't _tainted_. She erased all his mistakes, made everything right. She filled him with purpose, something he thought he had lost.

Tifa watched as he gazed around the bedroom of his daughter. He flexed his hand that was encased in the golden gauntlet, and put his head in his hands. He looked like he was crying, and it broke Tifa's heart to see him so distressed. She didn't know the girl very well, but knew that she was incredibly important to Vincent. She didn't want to see her friend loose the most precious thing he had left since waking from his 30 year slumber.

She sat beside him, but there was nothing she could say to comfort him. She knew there was no point of sugar coating the situation. Taylor was in serious trouble, and was likely to be subjected to horrific torture, just as her father had once before. And she knew Taylor might die as a result. But what else could they do?


	6. Torture

The first thing Taylor smelt when she woke was urine. It was highly unpleasant, clogging her senses and filling her head. The bitter tang of vomit coated her mouth, making her gag and retch despite having nothing left in her stomach to expell.

She groaned as she shifted her body, a throbbing ache rolling through each limb and pounding in her skull. The drowsiness of the sedative still hung thickly within her, making every move a massive effort.

It was only once she had rolled onto her side that she realised she was bound. Her wrists were tied behind her, restrained tightly with thin rope that cut into her skin and rubbed against the open wounds they were creating, a blinding pain flashing across her mind every time she moved. Her ankles were free, but her entire body felt exhausted and worn.

She was wet. Her entire body was soaked with cold water, her clothes sticking uncomfortably to her skin. Only once she realised she was wet did she start to shiver. Goosebumps rose along her skin, making a shudder dance its way down her spine.

It was quiet. Barely a sound reached her ears. All she could detect was the sound of water dripping and the monotone hum of a machine. Through her eyelids, she could tell that the room (or wherever she was) was brightly lit. She didn't open her eyes right away, knowing that the light would hurt her eyes if she dared.

For a moment, she lay still, assessing her situation. She had been kidnapped. Most likely by the lunatic in a labcoat her Father was so afraid of. The specific reasoning behind her abduction was unknown to her, but she knew it was probably a way for Hojo to emotionally destroy Vincent without getting too close to him. Which was a very bad thing. If it was a way to hurt her Father, then Hojo was out to cause her maximum pain and torment in order to enrage the gunslinger.

Not only was her situation dire, she also had no way out. She knew nothing about Hojo, knew not his strengths and weaknesses. As far as she could tell, she was trapped in a fatal situation.

A rather loud clang woke her from her reverie. It took everything in her not to jump and keep her body motionless. Footsteps sounded, getting closer before stopping beside her.

"The Professor said she should be awake by now." One voice said, a deep voice that Taylor knew belonged to a man mountain.

"Should be. Not would be." A lighter voice, still holding a tint of cruelty and insanity. A foot nudged her stomach, closely followed by a disgusted grunt, "Bring her anyway. He wants to start now."

"Yes Sir." A pair of hands slid under her, Man Mountain easily lifting her into his arms as if she weighed nothing. The hands themselves were huge - Taylor imagined two dustbin lids underneath her

.  
While she was transported, she kept her eyes closed, her breathing even and her body still. She didn't want to give away that she was awake just yet.

The environment around her suddenly changed. She found herself in a stuffily warm room, surrounded by sounds of humming, vibrating, bubbling and desperate wailing. Man Mountain lowered her and laid her body on what felt like a metal table. Her arms were crushed beneath her, pain exploding in her shoulders from the awkward position she was forced into.

"Ah, she's here. Excellent." The new voice was high pitched and filled with insanity. A feeling of dread and impending doom bloomed in her belly. She didn't need to look to know it was Hojo.

The Man Mountain released her wrists, laying her body out on the table so that he could fasten straps around her wrists and ankles to hold her down. The restraints were uncomfortably tight.

"She's not awake yet, Professor."

"She will be soon. Dismissed." The new voice said. Man Mountain and his superior left, the door slamming shut behind them. Hojo started clattering around, and Taylor finally opened her eyes. A lanky, greasy man stood across the room, sorting out a variety of metal instruments. His manky hair was pulled into a ponytail. Glasses sat halfway down his nose, his lips permanently curled into a grotesque sneer.

He turned, noticing her watching him. An unpleasant smile spread across his face and he sauntered over to her side. For a while, he stared down at her, his eyes roaming over her body with a malicious look in his eyes.

"So... you are Valentine's love child... very interesting indeed." He leant down, peering even closer at her face. Clammy fingers clamped down on her jaw, turning her head aside so he could assess her face, "Yes... as I suspected... you are just like him. A spitting image, in fact. Interesting..."

She wrenched her head away, earning an amused cackle from the scientist. He walked across the room, back to the metal instruments and transfered them to a a tray on wheels. While he sorted them, he kept his back to her but continued to mumble away to himself.

While he prepared his torture tools, she allowed herself a better view of the room. It appeared that there was only one door; thick steel which locked from the outside. It was fairly large, a pair of huge glass tubes against one wall, both of which filled with an eerie green substance. She was in the middle of the room, on a metal table with a light above her that shone directly onto her. The rest of the room was lined with desks and computers and cupboards, all of which housed a variety of nightmares.

Hojo pulled the mobile tray closer to the slab, setting it beside her within easy reach. Once closer, she could see it was lined with several sharp implements. All of them looked terrifying, glinting menacingly in the light. She shuddered violently at the thought of what these tools could do.

"What...what are you doing?" She asked, her voice barely a whisper. He cackled again, tapping her nose almost playfully, "Why am I here?"

"You will make a fine experiment. Your Father... useless. Failed. You, however, are the perfect specimen."

"Experiment...?"

"I am a scientist, child. Experimentation is what I do."

"Why me?"

"Because you're Valentine's child. You can succeed where he failed. Besides, everyone needs a little fun, don't you think?"

Taylor stared at him in horror, helpless against him as he started to cut her clothes and rip the fabric away from her body. Her protests and threats fell on deaf ears and the restraints were too tight for her to wrench free from. He left her underwear on, but she still felt highly exposed and humiliated without the protection of her clothes.

"We'll leave these on for now, hmm?" Hojo snapped the strap of her bra against her shoulder, "Daddy doesn't want to see your womanly body."

"I...My body?"

"I am going to ruin you, Miss. Valentine. And I will show Vincent what has happened to his precious little girl. It will destroy him, kill him. Two Valentine's with one stone."

He cackled again, his insane laugh getting under her skin and sending a shiver down her spine. He picked up a scalpel and examined it closely before letting it hover over her stomach. Her breathing hitched and her entire body stiffened.

He lowered it and in one swift movement he dragged it along her skin. It wasn't a deep cut. It didn't hurt but it did bleed. She could feel the blood start to pool on her navel, a few drops rolling over her side.

After the first incision, Hojo was like a man possessed. He seemed to be entranced by the sight of her blood, making more and more cuts in her flesh. They became deeper and deeper, longer and longer. Soon, she was crying in agony; begging him to stop. He didn't listen and continued to slice at her body. He moved from her stomach to her legs and then her chest.

She had no idea how long the torture lasted. It felt like hours. It stopped as suddenly as it started. Hojo stepped backwards and placed the bloody scalpel back on the tray.

Her head was swimming through blood loss and she felt weaker than before. Hojo picked up a camera, taking a few pictures from a few different angles before disappearing from the room.

Every inch of her body stung and ached. She was still bleeding heavily from numerous wounds. Her head became increasingly lighter and consciousness started to slip.

Through blurred vision, she saw her Father walking towards her. Her world went black once more.

Hojo was at her side when she regained consciousness. He was tightening something over the top of her left arm so the entire limb was rendered imobile. Once it was fastened down he tested it, bending it to assess her the range of motion she had in it. Agony tore through her elbow as he pushed it the wrong way.

Again he picked up the scalpel and dragged it down her arm, creating a long and deep gash in her lower arm. A scream tore from her throat that was so peircing, Hojo covered his ears. He laughed at her pain, picking up a syringe filled with a purple/black liquid and jabbed it into the the raw flesh now exposed in the wound.

She felt the substance immediately. It burned through her body like acid and invaded every inch of her. She screamed again, writhing as much as she could in the restraints. The pain stopped suddenly, but she felt it fizzing through her bloodstream. Hojo wrote a few things down on a clipboard while she panted and twitched on the slab.  
When he had finished writing, he picked up a strange metal item and a pot, scooping something out of the pot and sprinkling it into the wound. Fire burned against the raw flesh and the muscle, tearing another scream from her throat. Tears spilled from her eyes as he poured more of the powder into her wound.

He made more cuts on her arm and rubbed in the burning chemical. After a while, she lost the ability to scream. Silent tears poured from her eyes. She could only whisper desperate pleas, praying that her Father rescued her soon.

Hojo eventually finished, sneering down at her whilst regarding the damage he had inflicted on her arm.  
"How precious... just like your Father." He laughed, switching the light above her off and leaving the room. Once alone, she started to try and fight the restraints but they didn't give. She was trapped, and her arm was throbbing in agony. In the silent darkness of the room she allowed herself to cry. Fear gripped her, she she doubted if she would ever make it out alive. She wasn't strong enough to fiight Hojo off, and he had incapacitated her by tying her down.

Not only was she physically unable to fight him, but she had no idea where they were. For all she knew, they were in the middle of no where. Even if she did escape, it would be easy for her to get lost and starve to death while trying to get home.

"I'm going to die here." Her whisper was swallowed in the blackness. She cried, tears of agony, of exhaustion, of dispair and lonliness, "Dad... please come for me... please find me. I can't take it. I can't survive. You have to save me, Dad. You have to. I need you more than ever."

Her scent filled his nose, her jumper soft against his face. He had not left Taylor's room for the entirety of three days and had sat on her bed for all of that time. He cradled a few things to him and held them close.

Guilt and self-hatred burnt strong in his heart. He knew that her pain was his fault; he had been careless. He had underestimated Hojo and he had so easily snatched his little girl when Vincent's back was turned. When she was a mere toddler he had sworn to always protect her and promised her he would never let her go. But now she was in the grip of an insane man out to hurt Vincent.

He glanced around the scene of destruction once more. Her clothes lay strewn about and her personal belongings were scattered everywhere. Finally picking himself up from his position on her bed, he fetched a box from a cupboard in the hallway and started to pick up all the things that could be salvaged. He couldn't find much, but he salvaged what he could and through out everything that was past its use out of the window.

Her bed was still intact. Once he had cleared some space he pushed it into a corner. Underneath, he discovered a small shoebox and a diary that sat on top of it. The box was fairly dusty, yet the book seemed quite clean.

Opening it immediately told him that it was her diary. She had almost filled it, each page filled with her delicate handwriting. A few pages held sketches and doodles, some held scraps that she had glued in.

Temptation made him flick to the last few pages. He knew it was wrong to read it. All he wanted was an insight to his daughter and to understand her a little better. He was knowledgeable on most things; except women. Women and his own daughter were his downfall. He opened a page at random and started to read.

X.x.X

_Father went in the night. Woke up to find him gone. Can't really say I'm surprised, this happens a lot. Reeve was here in the morning, trying to fill me with pancakes and hot chocolate to lessen the sting. I mean, the man pissed off on my birthday without so much as a goodbye note! _

_I kicked Reeve out and spent the day sulking alone. I know I'm being selfish. But I can't remember a birthday I actually got to spend with my Father. He's always been away. I just thought this year would be different for a change._

X.x.X

Vincent swallowed heavily, the feeling of guilt multiplying as he read her scathing words. He knew that he had messed up by being away during her birthday but he had had no idea how much it had affected her.

He stood in the remnant's of her room, staring around him and suddenly noticed how bare it appeared. The walls were covered in a pale blue wallpaper that was now peeling off the wall but lacked any sort of poster or picture. She had pinned some of her artwork to the wall but nothing much else. She had a few ornaments and decorations around the room, but nothing really personal.

He sighed heavily, realising just how much he had sacrificed over the years. She was a wonderful girl, and had a heart of pure gold. But she had missed out on so much because of him, and he had missed out on so much because of work.

He vowed then to find her. He would find her and bring her home and no one would touch her again.

"Vincent... may I have a word?" Tseng stood in the doorway of the room, looking as stoic and melancholy as he always had. Vincent nodded once and the Turk stepped into the room.

"Have you found anything?" Vincent's voice was hopeful, but his heart was crushed when Tseng shook his head.

"Unfortunately no. We haven't found a single clue. Nibelheim is empty and the sight of her abduction is clean."

"He is serious about this. He has something planned."

"What makes you think that?"

"Because he has been so clean. He is keeping her hidden and erasing his past so he can carry out his sadistic plan. He is making sure that we cannot interupt him before he has finished."

"Do you have any inkling as to what he is planning?"

Vincent shook his head and leant against the wall, sliding down until he was sitting on the floor. He was simply exhausted. Emotionally and physically drained.

...

When Vincent awoke the next morning, he found himself in his own bed. A tray of food sat beside him with a large brown envelope that had 'DO NOT BEND' stamped along the front.

He snatched it up and opened it, pulling out the contents. There was no note included with the three photo's he retrieved from inside. They didn't need explaining. He stared at the images in horror.

It was Taylor. She was severely bloodied and wounded and she looked terrified. She was in her underwear and restrained to a metal slab. It was clear to see that Hojo had wasted no time in torturing her. His heart shattered into a thousand pieces when he saw the dispair and torture in her eyes. It hurt even more knowing that he couldn't help her.

In one fluid motion he spun around on the spot and crashed his fist through the chest of drawers that sat beside his bed. It splintered immediately, destroyed with one well aimed punch. The sound of it drew Avalanche to his room. His friends crowded in through the door with their weapons drawn.

"Vincent, what the hell?!" Yuffie exclaimed upon seeing the heap of wood and fabric at Vincent's feet.

"Vincent... what's happened?" Tifa sensed something wrong the second she saw the tormented expression Vincent wore, "What's that?"

The gunslinger handed over the pictures without so much as a word of warning. Tifa blanched and thrust the pictures at Cloud. The blonde visibly paled and shuddered at the bloodied sight of his friend's daughter. Yuffie screamed and bolted from the room, Cid swearing as loud and as many times as possible. Only Barret remained apparently impassive.

For a while, they all stood in silence while taking in this new piece of information. It was a very bad sign that Hojo had started so quickly and had dived straight in with his torture. Vincent was rapidly loosing hope and was starting to believe that he wouldn't see his precious little girl again.

Cid and Barret left the room, sending Tseng and Elena in. The crimson clad man appreciated Tseng's efforts to help, but Elena irritated him. At that moment, he wanted to slap the doe eyed look of her face and kick her out of his house. But, he supposed, Tseng needed eye candy.

"Vincent. We've taken a look at the envelope. It was sent from here. She's still in this town."

**Two Months Later.**

The kettle whistled at him, the shrill screaming demanding that he took it off the fire. He did so, pouring it in a pan and adding a bit of cold. Into the warm water he dropped a few clothes, taking them to the girl who lay on the floor. Kneeling at her side, he placed it on the floor and removed the dressings from her wounds so he could clean them.

"They hurt..."

"I apologize, Yuffie. I will be a gentle as possible."

He gently cleaned the wounds, his mind yet again wandering to his daughter. She was still out there somewhere and still in the grip of that mad scientist. Two weeks previously they had discovered the compound in which she was being kept, but by the time they stormed it Hojo had transported her.

The Professor had anticipated their movements and had pinned pictures of Taylor's torture all around the room she had been kept in. All had gotten progressively worse and it disturbed Vincent to see how empty she seemed to become. The most recent photo sat on the bed she had been restrained on; Vincent still carried it upon him.

Once he had cleaned Yuffie's wounds and redressed them, he moved away so he could regard the picture in privacy. The torture had moved above surgical tools; it was now a combination of physical abuse and any sharp implement She was beaten and bruised and laying on her side. She appeared to be unconscious, a state she probably spent most of her time in.

She was painfully skinny and gaunt and her skin was so pale she looked corpse like. Her hair was matted and greasy and she was so dirty and caked in blood that she'd probably need several baths to get it all off her.

The one bit that affected him most was her left arm. It was ruined, completely disfigured and broken, much like his own. It killed him to see his own history repeating on his daughter and knowing what it entailed. It would take a lot of work and effort for her to use that arm again, and she would be stuck with the scarring and the horrific memories.

In his heart, he knew he would find her body. She'd be dead before he found her, and it was a truth that was tearing Vincent apart.

"Taylor... I am so sorry. I am so sorry Little One."


	7. Light At The End Of A Long Dark Tunnel

_This chapter gets a little...rapey. I've tried not to make it too graphic, but it's there. This idea came about from a chat on Twitter with Brethren _Yazoo who suggested I pop it in to 'spice it up'. And so I have. So, this chapter is for her. Let me know what you think!_

...

Taylor groaned and rolled onto her back. In the two months that had passed since her arrival things had escalated rather a lot.

For the first three weeks she had been kept on the metal slab. Hojo had fed and watered her himself so he didn't have to release her. By the time he finally let her up her muscles had wasted and were useless. She could barely hold up her own body weight, let alone fight the lunatic professor.

Now, she was kept in a crummy little cell and only seen to when Hojo got bored. Food was thrown in once a day and she was given water twice a day. Besides that, she was left to fester in the darkness alone.

By now, several of her wounds were infected and were rapidly getting worse and Hojo had deliberately given her an unknown illness for the fun of it. With a weakened immune system and potential blood poisoning, her outlook was bleak.

She sat up, leaning against the wall in a bid to keep herself up and off the grubby floor. It was pitch black so she had no idea what the cell looked like but she could feel something cold and slimey on the floor. Without knowing what it was, she was reluctant to lay down. It was bad enough she had to sit in it.

For a while, it was silent. All she could hear was the sound of her breathing and the eerie sounds that her subconsciousness created to freak her out. Her eyes made out shapes in the darkness, bodies of nothing that danced around her.

The blackness that filled the room was suffocating and thick. It was pressing in on her, filling every inch of her and dragging her slowly into madness. Voices started to ring out from the void of nothing. She knew it was madness, but the voices sounded disturbingly real. But, she reasoned, being alone was a blessing.

But she wasn't left alone for long. Footsteps sounded along the hall accompanied with the clinking of keys. The only time someone went into the hall was if she were being fed - or summoned. A key was inserted into the lock and twisted. The huge wooden door swung open and she found herself staring at Man Mountain. He turned his face into an expression of disgust and he gave an exaggerated sniff to translate his disdain.

"You smell like a sewer." Was his predictable comment as he approached her. She shied away from his massive bulk as he grew closer. The light hit her face when he moved. It shone brilliantly through the door and burned her dark adjusted eyes. A cry was drawn from her throat at the sudden shock of the stabbing pain that jolted through her skull.

The momentary distraction was all Man Mountain needed to reach down and grip her wrists in his hands and bring them together behind her back to slap a pair of cuffs over her wrists in the same motion. She didn't want to know where he had acquired the handcuffs; they were standard Turk issue.

He threw her over his shoulder and proceeded to march along the halls of Hojo's compound. Taylor was left to watch the ground move by under his feet as he strode along, randomly wondering how big his stride was.

All too soon they arrived at the laboratory. Hojo was ready and waiting as usual with a sick smile on his face. It was that smile that told her that something was different and something had changed. Dred pooled in her stomach and started to branch out along the rest of her body and fill every inch of her.

Man Mountain dropped her on the metal slab and strode off, Taylor guessing he had a toddler to eat. Hojo was eerily quiet for a while, his eyes fixed on her with a twisted grin starting to pull on the corner of his lips. A malicious glint was settled in his eyes as he hungrily roamed his eyes over her body. A shudder passed through her body in fear of what she knew was coming.

xxx

Her body ached. Ached and burned. Tears stung her eyes and her throat was raw from pointless screams. Her shoulders were in agony from having her own weight and that of a full grown male pressed down on them and her wrists raw from her frantic attempts to free herself from the cuffs.

A pained sob escaped her to shatter the solemn silence around her. The whole room seemed to be mourning for her. She sat up, realising she was in a completely different room to the slimy cell she had been in before her ordeal with Hojo.

It was a perfect square with one bed in the middle of the room and a light directly above it. Beside that, it was empty. Another glance told her that it lacked a window. Another glance around told her that the room was windowless. The door was also missing. Where the door was supposed to be, she saw a mass of bricks.

"They've... they've sealed me in?!" Her voice was unexpectedly loud in the muted silence of the room. Her fists beat on the brick that trapped her in the mint green tomb. There was a vent which apparently pumped in fresh air to keep her alive until she either starved to death or managed to end her own life.

Hojo was finished with her. Whatever his plan had been, it had been completed. That, or she was a failed experiment like her Father had been. She was either useless or he had the information he needed. Either way, her life was no longer of importance and keeping her alive was a waste of resources.

So they entombed her in a mint green room in which she would die either painfully and slowly or quickly and suddenly. She hoped it was suddenly.

With a heavy heart, Taylor returned to the bed where she perched on the end of the bed where she sat and hugged the pillow to her chest. Loneliness was beginning to settle in, and the muted silence was starting to press in on her and smother her. Panic filled her mind and she started to imagine the many ways she could kill herself using the bare furnishings in her room.

She counted five methods of a slow painful death.

Vincent looked at the picture of his daughter once more before tucking it under his cloak. It was a motivational tool, kicking his ass into efforts to find her. It also reminded him of one of his biggest failures.

Yuffie stirred behind him, still slumped on the bed. They were taking refuge in one of Vincent's old hideouts that he had frequented before Taylor had arrived on his doorstep.

It was one of his favourites. A secret hollow in a massive rock face, it was private and well defended. It sat outside of Midgar, protected by a thick wall of tree's that were bunched close together. A heavy curtain of ivy fell over the entrance which masked it completely. It was hard to find and Vincent adored the privacy of it.

Taylor has described the inside as 'magical'. It was the size of one room and a perfect dome. Vincent had covered the floor completely in rugs and furs and had installed an armchair, a book case and a metal trunk full of the essentials that he would need to stay. A collapsible camp bed had also been installed and it was upon this that Yuffie lay.

She was weak from their perilous situation a few days prior. Upon learning Taylor's position, Avalanche and the Turk's had decided to storm the compound. Hojo had already moved her, meaning they had arrived to an empty compound that stank of blood and fear. Taylor's blood was everywhere. Chaos had detected infection and illness in the blood, a concern which Vincent had yet to voice.

The dead end had temporarily stunned the group which prompted Vincent to take off on his own in an attempt to track her. Yuffie had volunteered to join him, an offer that Vincent suspected had more to do with a need to keep an eye on him than the desire to be helpful.

Vincent and Yuffie had set off from the compound and tracked through the forest. He had suspected Hojo would flee that way in order to throw people off his trail. They had blundered through the forest in hopes that they would find a clue that would lead them to the girl.

Along their travel's, they had encountered a fair few monsters. Only one had caught them off guard, attacking Yuffie and causing some serious damage to her arm and stomach. The beast slashed at her with his razor sharp claws.

Now, she lay in bed recovering. Pain crossed her face at random intervals and small noises of agony rose from her when she moved the wounds wrong. Vincent watched her sleep, watched the awkward rise and fall of her chest as she tried to breathe without disturbing the healing wounds. He watched as she'd twitch occasionally, fighting off the monster in her dreams.

It was his fault. His reactions had been too slow and now someone else had been hurt because of him. Yuffie. Energetic, playful, immature little Yuffie had been crippled by this savage beast. She had been reduced to a quivering sweaty wreck on a makeshift bed and fighting back a drug induced fever.

Vincent watched her for a moment longer before he moved to the mouth of the room. It was there that he was able to receive signal to his PHS. He switched it on and peeped through the ivy while he waited for it to fully start up. Once it was ready, he flicked through his contacts and called Cloud. The dialling tone sounded in his ear for an uncomfortably long time and he started to think the blonde wouldn't answer.

"..."

"Cloud. I need your assistance."

"Have you found her?"

"No. But I think I was close."

"Why did you stop?"

"Yuffie. She has been badly injured."

"What happened?"

"We were ambushed by a monster. It clawed her flesh and created deep wounds in her arm and her stomach. She needs to be taken back to the bar for medical care and rest. Would you pick her up?"

"Mm."

"Thank you. I shall meet you at the edge of the forest."

WIth that, the two men hung up. Neither were fans of long conversation. Vincent had passed on the information he had needed to, and help was now on its way for Yuffie.

Vincent turned back into the room and surveyed the Wutain Ninja on the bed. She seemed more peaceful and Vincent guessed that the medication he had administered had kicked in and sent her into a painless slumber. It would make her easier to transport. He would have to carry her to the meeting point with Cloud and it was likely to be a painful ordeal.

...

Vincent set the still slumbering Yuffie on the floor and leant her back against a huge rock to keep her vaguely upright. Cloud hadn't arrived yet, leaving Vincent to pace in front of the injured female.

Soon enough he spotted a gleaming object speeding towards him. Even from a distance he could tell that it wasn't Fenrir. It was a van, a large van that glinted menacingly in the light of the sun. Instinctively he positioned himself in front of the vulnerable form on the floor and touched his hand to Cerberus. His long fingers curled lightly around the familiar shape of the weapon holstered by his thigh, seeming to fit it perfectly.

The van drew ever closer and Vincent grew more and more agitated. The sun glared off the windscreen which made it next to impossible to tell who was driving and whether or not they were a threat.

The van pulled to a stop beside them and a bright eyed Tifa leant out of the window, gesturing for Vincent to get in the back with the Ninja.

"Vincent! Great news!"

"What?"

"Taylor's phone came back on. We tracked it's location to an office block that's been unused for years. The Turk's are on their way now, we're supposed to join them there."

Vincent scooped Yuffie up and stepped into the back off the van. Cid took Yuffie from the gunslinger, allowing the Crimson Eyed Nightmare to sit and fret.

What if it was another false lead? What if it was a trap? What if it was a joke? What if Taylor had already been moved and they found another empty building? He didn't think he could handle any more disappointment. His paternal instinct was telling him that they were getting closer to her, that they were so close to finding her. The darkest recesses of his heart told him that they would find her corpse and their rescue would be too late.

Chaos started to stir, sensing his Host's agitation. Vincent clenched and unclenched his fists several times, trying to prepare himself for the worst. Even if they found her alive, they may not be there in time to save her life. Could he stand it if she died in his arms?

They drove in silence. The journey seemed to take forever and Vincent grew more and more angsty. Barrett and Cid sat opposite him in complete silence. Cloud drove with a look of steely determination on his face and Tifa started to run though a plan.

They would infiltrate the building with the Turk's, invading all possible entrances so Hojo didn't have a chance to slip past them - if he was still inside. They would work their way through, checking each and every room thoroughly and double checking every crevice to ensure they didn't miss the girl.

"Is everyone clear?" Tifa was finishing the plan of action as they pulled to a stop around the corner from the building. The doors opened and they were greeted with the sights of the Turks and the SOLDIER's.

Tseng had spread out the blueprints of the building across the bonnet of the sleek black Turk vehicle. He was running through the same plan that Tifa had, and was just concluding as Avalanche gathered around the car.

Vincent cast a quiet gaze around the group. He knew most of them were wondering why they were bothering with the rescue mission. But he also knew that Rufus had authorized the mission as a chance to capture and punish Hojo for his previous crimes against the company. Vincent didn't care for their motives as long as Taylor was returned to him.

The group dispersed and surrounded the building. Vincent was grouped with Cloud, Cid, Tseng, Reno, Sephiroth, and Genesis while Tifa, Barrett, Elena, Rude, Angeal and Zack took the other entrance.

Directly on the hour they moved in, storming the doors and bursting through their respective entrances. The building was empty. Still, they moved cautiously and crept through the corridors, checking every room on every floor to make sure Taylor wasn't in any of them.

"According to the monitor, Taylor is on the seventh floor." Tseng informed them quietly. Vincent, in a fit of desperate panic and growing despair snatched the monitor off Tseng and separated from the group. He charged straight up to the seventh floor, following the small blip on the hand held monitor that was tracking Taylor's phone.

"Vincent! Get your dang ass back 'ere!" Cid's bellow followed him up the stairs, but he didn't stop or hesitated. He was fixated on the one clue that may lead him to his Little Girl and nothing was going to stop him now.

He heard footsteps on the stairwell behind him, Cid's cursing telling him that his group had chosen to follow him into a potentially deadly situation rather than let him face it alone.

He reached the seventh floor and burst into he corridor with hope growing inside him. The corridor was long and white and smelt musty and damp. It was clear that the building hadn't been used for a considerable amount of time and there was no way that Hojo had used it recently.

The gunslinger charged through the corridor, heading for the blip of his daughter. Stopping, he could see that there were two doors, two rooms where she could possibly be.

"Vincent... You take that door and we'll take this one." Tseng instructed. A quick nod from the legendary male and Tseng pushed open his door. Like all the other rooms they had so far encountered, this one was empty. It was nothing but a square room with a thick layer of dust collecting on the floor.

So, Vincent tried his door. Again, nothing but a thick layer of dust and a sombre looking room that ached to be used again.

"I do not understand. How can the signal be coming from nowhere?"

"I don't know... it's a new monitor, it can't be broken. It's definitely tracing her PHS..."

For a moment, Tseng tapped the monitor while Reno paced in front of him. Cid and Sephiroth checked the rooms opposite by they were just as empty and forgotten.

"Look... those two doors are extraordinarily far apart... which means the walls in those two rooms is a few feet thick." Genesis pointed out. Everyone did a quick mental calculation and Reno quickly studied the wall.

"This door has been bricked up and painted over. And recently too."

"Everyone stand back."

Vincent stepped back a few feet, his eyes starting to glow golden. Everyone did as he said and retreated down the corridor.

In a frenzy of flying fists and whirling feet, Vincent tore down the brick wall like it was a gingerbread house. The group stayed at the end of the corridor by the stairwell to allow him to explore the room alone.

He saw nothing but the bed and the emaciated girl that lay in the middle. It was almost like sleeping beauty, had she not been so bloodied and bruised. She didn't stir and Vincent sensed that she was knocking on death's door.

Her breathing was coming in agonized rasps, her chest heaving with the effort of pulling air in and expelling it. Her temperature was through the roof which caused a thin layer of sweat to coat her skin. Several of her wounds were infected and causing more problems than what she was already battling with, and her left arm was so grotesque that Vincent himself wanted to vomit upon seeing it.

Very gently he scooped up his daughter and held her to his chest. Her temperature penetrated his leather suit almost immediately, her tiny body acting like a major radiator. With a quite curse he spun round and strode from the room, sweeping down the corridor and back down the stairwell.

He carried her from the building, out to the vehicles that waited for them and demanded that he was driven back to his house where he could begin his intensive care for Taylor. She never left his arms. Not once. She never stirred. Not once. He could only pray that she was strong enough to last until the help finally got to her.

...

_Rate and review! I'm sorry if this is filled with typo's and spelling mistakes and awful grammar. It's 4am and I'm feeling a little dizzy. But let me know what you think. And I am so sorry it took so long. Enjoy and thank you for sticking with it! 3_


	8. Fever

_I am so sorry that Chapter 7 took so long for me to publish. I had no muse for it and I just couldn't get it right. Every time I wrote it it was wrong, so I kind of gave up for a while. Please forgive me!  
This chapter is soley following Vincent. Taylor is incapacitated and this follows Vincent in his efforts to save her life and his internal battles. I have decided to bring Reno in more. Review and give me your thoughts!_

...

Taylor barely moved for the entire journey back. Vincent kept her cradled his chest and repeatedly kissed the top of her head. Her familiar scent was gone, replaced by blood, sweat and fear.

The sight of her was making his blood boil. She was so painfully thin he could feel her bones through the thick jacket Tifa had put on her. Lacerations coated 90% of her body and most of them were highly infected. They were red and swollen and a few were oozing to show their severity. Her skin was dirty and caked in grime and sweat and her black hair was so matted and greasy Vincent doubted he could get it untangled. Her left arm hung limply, sittng on his knee's. It was horrifically disfigured and maimed. Not an inch of skin had been left untouched, red raw and weeping.

The van pulled to a gentle stop in front of the Valentine's home and the side door slid open to allow Vincent to climb out. Stepping onto the pavement, he could see the shock of red hair that was Reno. The Turk stood at the end of the drive, watching Vincent anxiously and trying to peer at the girl in his arms. Protectively and a little childishly, Vincent curled his cloak around her comatose form.

He strode past the lovestruck Turk and entered the house. He made a beeline for her bedroom and laid her out on the bed. In the clear light of day, she looked broken and destroyed. It took everything in him to fight back the tears that sprung to his eyes.

"Vincent. Go downstairs and prepare some medication to deal with her infections. Let Elena and I clean her up."

"No. I am capable."

"You're in no fit state and she's a young woman... just give us enough time to wash her down. We'll look after her Vincent. I promise." Tifa placed her hand on his arm to draw his attention from the girl to the barmaid. She smiled sympathetically up at him and squeezed his arm gently, "I know you're scared Vincent. It's understandable. But you can't do this alone. You need our help to care for her and that's all we're trying to do. We won't hurt her. We just need to wash all the muck off her so the infection's don't get worse."

"I shall give you twenty minutes." His growl was menacing as he swept out of the room and stormed into the kitchen. He had just been reunited with his precious daughter and he wasn't happy being parted from her.

The kitchen was empty save for the red haired Turk. Vincent couldn't help a surge of hatred for the Shinra Employee even though Reno had played no part in her capture and had been tireless in his efforts to find the girl. The man was now hunched over at the table while nursing a cup of coffee. He looked thoroughly miserable with worry etched on his youthful face. A brief spark of panic flashed across his face when he saw Vincent.

"Is she...?"

"No. She is being washed down by Tifa and Elena. I am simply preparing medication and getting the medical supplies ready."

"Need any help?"

"No."

Vincent retrieved the first aid kit that he kept in one of the cupboards and started to prepare syringe's with various painkillers, antibiotics and serums that Vincent hoped would bring Taylor back from the brink of death.

Reno remained silent behind him. The Gunslinger knew that he was being unreasonable but he couldn't help but resent the Turk. Secretly, he feared that Taylor would fall deeply in love with the man and leave Vincent behind. It was a fear he would never voice to any of his friends and especially not the red haired calamity behind him.

The ageless male sat at the table opposite Reno who was the picture of depression. He sat with his head hanging and his eyes downcast. His lips were twisted into a grim expression of concern and his entire face looked terrified.

"Would you assist me in cleaning and caring for her wounds?"

"You want my help?"

"She has a huge number of lacerations. Most of which have become infected. I will need assisstance to clean them all and treat them in good time. They have been left to fester and worsen for too long and her condition continues to decline at an alarming rate. The quicker we clean them and begin to help, the quicker her body can concentrate on healing itself."

"Of course...I'll do anything."

Vincent studied his face, searching the powder blue eyes for a sinister motive. He found nothing but devotion and a desire to help the girl he was falling in love with. Briefly, the Gunslinger opened himself up and allowed appreciation and acceptance to flow freely from him.

Just as easily as he opened himself up, he clammed up again. Reno seemed to sense the flow of emotion but he didn't speak of it. He understood the Gunman's protective walls.

After several uncomfortable moments of sitting in silence, Elena briskly strode through the door to start making herself and Tseng some coffee.

"Your daughter is now decent. You can go and see to her now." The blonde Turk informed as if she were some kind of secretary. Vincent stood and smoothly bolted from the room while taking the stairs two at a time. Reno was hot on his heels but Vincent wasn't concerned. He only had Taylor in his mind.

Tifa was at the end of the bed, throwing Taylor's dirtied clothes into a bin liner. Taylor was now dressed only in her underwear which left her now tiny body exposed. With the sweat and grime washed off her, her problems became much more apparent.

Her hips jutted out sharply and her ribs were agonizingly prominent. Her limbs were so thin that Vincent reckoned he could snap them simply by flicking them. She was whiter than she'd every been with dark circles around her eyes. Gaunt and corpselike, she looked like she was already dead. Her breathing was painful, rasping and slow and the only indicator of life.

Vincent set the medical equipment on the bed by her hip while he knelt beside her. Reno rounded the bed and knelt opposite him, taking the cotton pads and saline from Vincent when it was offered.

"What's this?"

"Saline. Use this to clean each wound and flush it out. Make sure you clean them thoroughly so there is no dirt left in them at all. Once they are clean and do not need to fight off the foreign bodies, they should hopefully begin to start healing themselves."

Reno nodded and began to do as instructed by the father. Vincent began to carefully flush out the wounds, gritting everytime she flinched or winced in her agony induced coma. He was thorough, meticulously flooding each wound with the saline solution and blasting the wound through to get rid of any lingering dirt grain.

Once it was clean he treated it with a simple cream that would help aid the tortured wound and then left it be. He moved onto the next and continued religiously until one half of her body was treated and cleaned. Once he was finished, he went back to check the wounds he had just cleaned. It was only now that he noticed the faded scratch marks on her inner thighs. Reno wasn't far behind him, finishing his aid when Vincent was studying the scratches on her legs.

They were more recent than the lacerations that covered most of her body and were made by something other than a sharp impliment. Vincent racked his brain to think of what could make such marks.

"Vincent..." The Crimson eyed male turned his gaze to Reno who had paled considerably upon sight of the marks. Obviously he had seen those types of wounds a lot, "They're scratchmarks."

His blood boiled. Anger flashed across his mind in a white hot flash, blinding him. He clenched his fists, smashing the bottle of saline he had been holding. He was aware that Reno was speaking but he heard nothing through his rage.

The sick, evil, twisted 'scientist' had tortured his little girl in every way possible. Now, it was evident that he had forced himself upon her and taken her tiny body when she was in no fit state to ward him of. Vincent could only imagine her horror and humiliation at such a degrading act. He wanted to pull her into his arms and never let her go. But he had more work to do to ensure she would recover.

Her inner elbow's were heavily bruised from whatever Hojo had done to her. It was clear that she had been subject to his experiments and that he had kept her on some kind of drip. Vincent winced as he pushed a needle under her skin and emptied it's contents into her system. He hoped that the antibiotics would help her fight the infections so her body could focus on healing herself.

After hooking her to a drip and giving her several more injections, he pulled a thin sheet over her to cover and took his place at her side.

Reno hovered by the end of the bed, seemingly unsure as to what he wanted to or thought he should do.

"What are your interests in my daughter?"

"I... she's a very sweet girl, Vincent. You did a remarkable job raising her."

"What do you want from her?"

"Nothing sinister! I just... I guess I just want her."

"Want her as...?"

"A girlfriend. I would like her to be my girlfriend."

"You are a known lothario. You have a reputation with women. You will only hurt her."

"Granted, I used to be a womaniser. But this is different. Taylor is special. I only want her. I don't even want that hot secretary in reception at Shinra. In fact, she's not even hot anymore. Vincent, I only want your daughter. And I will take good care of her. I promise."

Vincent fell silent and watched the Turk. Reno shifted uncomfortably under the piercing crimson stare but he didn't waver or move. He sat on the end of the bed and turned his attention to Taylor.

For a long while, both men sat and stared at her. They watched as the moonlight started to creep onto her face, watched as her face screwed up with pain before relaxing again. Vincent couldn't deny Reno's concern and desperation to help her. As much as it pained him to admit, the Turk definately felt a something for Taylor that surpassed anything the red head had felt for any other woman.

Vincent knew that a devotion like that was something worth cherishing. He too had felt that way, but for him it had only ended in sadness and pain. Maybe it would be a different story for Reno and Taylor? Maybe they could have the happy ending he once dreamt of?

"You are a Turk. Your job is hard and it is dangerous. You risk your life every day."

"Yeah, I guess. But you used to do it too, once. You can't hold it against me."

"But I can. What if you and Taylor became a couple. She would come to lean on you and you would be the main figure in her life. And then one day you are killed at work. What then? Taylor would be left behind to pick herself up. Her heart would never be the same."

Reno fell silent while he thought about this. Vincent could almost see his thought process as he pondered to the future. He still wasn't detered. Secretly, Vincent admired his determination to love his daughter. It was an undying, unwavering bond that she needed.

For a moment, Vincent wondered if he was being too harsh. She was capable of making up her own mind and surely deserved to be with someone who respected her and treated her right. And he had no doubt that Reno would be type of man who looked after a woman and treated her well.

He glanced back to his daughter, his heart sinking upon sight of her. He almost expected her to be better now she was treated, but she still looked awful.

...

Two months slowly passed by with Taylor in a coma and Vincent continuously at her side. She showed no signs of regaining consciousness and he was beginning to loose hope. Her wounds had all healed nicely with no more problems but had scarred horribly. Her left arm was just as useless and scarred as Vincent's and it pained him greatly.

Her fever remained. Every day they were battling to keep her temperature down and try to lower it but the illness remained and refused to leave. She became thinner and the one doctor Vincent had called out told him that she would likely die.

"Vincent?" The crimson clad male turned his gaze to the doorway. Tifa stood with her hand on the door frame and wore a worried expression. The Father himself had barely eaten and spent most of his time either sitting at the end of the bed and watching her facial expressions or sitting at her side with her tiny hand engulfed in his.

"May I help?"

"No...I came to watch Taylor for you. So you can go eat and shower."

"I appreciate the offer but I do not need you to do that. I shall sit with her for now."

"Vincent... You've been in this room for over a month. You NEED to get out of here. She's been in a coma for over two months. It won't change in an hour. GO! Get out of the house and feed."

"But I..."

"She'll be fine, Vincent. I'm here and Cloud will come up too. You need to get out and take in the fresh air. She'll want you fit and healthy when she wakes."

Vincent looked from his daughter to the barmad and back before he relented and nodded. He knew he looked a state and his stomach growled deperately for food. He was in dire need of a wash and he hadn't seen the light of day for a long while. It was high time he left for a few moments. Tifa was right. Taylor wouldn't wake anytime soon.

So he gave in and stood, walking from the room without so much as a backwards glance at his daughter. He shuffled into his room and gathered some clothes before heading to the bathroom.

Once he turned on the water, it quickly filled up with steam and clouded up the mirrors and the glass. The room itself became misted with tiny water molecules that dulled the pale yellow walls.

His clothes fell away and crumpled to his feet in fabric pools. The water felt good on his skin. The hot water washed away the two months of stink he had collected over the two months his child had been in the coma and beat down on his tense muscles. It warmed him through and seemed to lift his mood considerably.

He automatically reached for the _Miracle Shine_ shampoo that Taylor always bought. He stared at it for a moment, tears welling in his eyes. Once opened, the exotic smell of Coconut and Wutain Rose assaulted his sense of smell. He was immediately transported to a better time.

_Taylor sat on the fence, her legs swinging and her hair waving in the soft breeze. She wore a pair of short denim shorts and a thin vest top with a heavy pair of walking boots. Her hands were curled around the wood of the fence to hold her up and she leant forwards. Vincent was fighting a monster and demonstrating how it should be done. _

_She watched carefully, drinking it all in and learning everything Vincent was giving her. She was eager to learn and even more eager to get started and fight some monsters for herself. Vincent wanted to make sure she was ready and prepared before starting her off. _

_The monster, exhausted and in agony decided to change tactic. He reared up and charged Vincent who shot a round of three bullets into his thick skull. It roared, showing menacing row of sharp yellow teeth. His huge bulk thundered at Vincent who only just ducked in time and continued going. He ran straight at Taylor, who had no time to move or defend herself. His huge clawed paws swiped at her and knocked her backwards off the fence. _

_A panicked Vincent shot at the Monster until he was on the floor and bleeding heavily but all motion from the beast had stopped. He ran to where Taylor had been perched and used the monster to vault himself over the fence and land beside the girl who was starting to pick herself up. _

_"Are you injured?"_

_"No...No, I'm fine Dad. Just bruised."_

_"Are you sure? Do not try to move if you do not think you can manage it." He slid his arms under her and lifted her easily to carry her away from his make shift arena and into the house. One arm draped over his shoulder and held onto his cloak, head tucked under his chin. The ever familiar scent of coconut and Wutain rose filled his nose, the scent that was his daughter. He held her a little tighter and was slightly more reluctant to let her go._

He immediately put it back in it's place on the corner of the bath. It sat beside her conditioner and body wash, items of personal hygiene that hadn't been used for the months that she'd been away.

Instead, he used the cheap brand that wasn't as good but smelt nothing like the brand his daughter religiously used. Another flashback smacked him like a tonne of bricks,

_Taylor took a step back to alllow her a better view of the shelves. Her eyes darted from side to side as she read each label on the front of the shampoo bottles. As she bent forwards, her hair fell over her shoulders to block the view of her face. Vincent could tell that she was studying the bottles closely. _

_"Taylor, does it even matter? They all wash your hair."_

_She straightened, turning to her Father with an indignant expression on her face. It took everything in him not to laugh._

_"They do different things to your hair Dad! Some make it shine, some repair it, some make it softer and some reduce the frizz! You have to choose the right one for your hair!"_

_Vincent smirked as she went back to studying the shampoo's and conditioners while Vincent stood behind her. He glanced to the basket in his hand, mostly filled with Taylor's items. Makeup, hair dye, body wash, deoderant and even vitamins filled the metal thing and weighed it down. She eventually picked a brand and deposited it in the basket before wandering further down the aisle. _

The air was cool on his skin when he stepped out of the shower. Goosebumps rose to the surface of his skin and a shiver passed down his spine as his body adjusted to the rapid temperature change. Water molecules in the air swirled around him and occasionally dusted some warmth across his body, dampening his skin as he rubbed himself dry.

Worn jeans and a loose fitting black shirt took the place of his leather body suit. A quick comb through the trademark black hair and he looked reasonable. As he exited the bathroom, he came face to face with Cloud who had climbed the stairs.

"Vincent...how're you doing?"

"As well as I can. How is Taylor?"

"She's fine, Vincent. No change. But you should go eat."

At the mere mention of food, Vincent's stomach growled. The intense ache in the pit of his stomach increased until he almost felt dizzy and was forced to give in.

The cupboards were surprisingly filled with food even though Vincent hadn't shopped for months. It was clear that someone had been using the kitchen and that someone had been living in the house with him while he cared for his daughter. He was strangely touched.

...

The TV filled the room with noise, warding away the oppressing silence. For the first time since her return home, Taylor had been left alone. Vincent sat in the living room with Tifa and Cloud.

He stared blankly at the TV, watching some comedy pannel show with an annoying host who owned an equally annoying laugh. All Vincent heard was the thunder that rolled around the house, and the rain that pelted at the windows. The weather was the reason that both Cloud and Tifa were still at the house; the roads were too treacherous for them to try. Fenrir was safely stored in Vincent's garage.

Tifa giggled, bringing Vincent back into the room and turning his attention back to the TV. The comedian's were currently picking apart a celebrity couple, something Vincent had absolutely no interest in at all.

Another flash bolted through the house and was quickly followed by a huge clap of thunder. Shortly after, the lights flashed once and completely went out.

"Great."

"Vincent, where do you keep the candles?"

"In the drawer beside Cloud. There are also four hand-held flashlights and two battery powered camping lamps."

Cloud shuffled around in the dark for a moment before retrieving one flashlight and using it to light the room. He handed it to Tifa before producing two more and one of the lamps. The lamp went on the table, casting an eerie glow around the room. Lightning still flashed around and Vincent sighed heavily, wrinkling his nose.

Movement in the corner of the room had all three adults on edge, drawing their respective weapons in preparation of a fight.

"T-Taylor?!" Cloud sounded confused, prompting Vincent to step closer. His daughter stood in the corner of the room with a thin sheen of sweat coating her skin. Her hair was ruffled and stuck to her skin and she was trembling violently, "Vincent..."

"Taylor, what are you doing out of bed?" He reached for her hand but she yanked it away and threw herself against the wall, glaring at him with pure hatred in her eyes.

"You promise...you always promised that you'd come to me when I called...when I needed you. And did you? Where were you when I needed you?"

"I was looking for you. I was tracking you."

"I needed you! I was at my most vulnerable and you let me down. You're good at that...you're so good at it that I wasn't even surprised." She hissed viciously. Vincent just stared at her, watching her sway unsteadily on the spot.

For a moment, she only glared at him but the expression slid off her face. Her eyes rolled back as she teetered forwards and collapsed suddenly. Vincent caught her and slowly lowered her to the floor as Tifa and Cloud approached.

Tifa's slender hand snaked from behind Vincent to rest on the girls clammy forehead, her thumb brushing the temple to assure the now motionless girl.

"Her fever broke. That's it...she's in the clear."


	9. Restoring Normality

_This is it. This is the final chapter of Valentine's Rage. I've come to a bit of a dead end with this one BUT the story will be continued in another story. I'm not giving anything away about the story line but it's going to be more comical than depressing. This chapter is a little jumpy. It jumps over the progression of a year to show their progress.  
Thank you to everyone who read this to the end and stuck with me. And thank you for the brilliant reviews both on here and on Twitter. I owe you all and thank you so much. It means a lot! So, here's to the last chapter. Read and review!_

...

Two days after Taylor's strange fit of rage, she finally regained consciousness. For the first time in just over a year, she woke in comfort. Light filtered in through the curtains and warmed her where it touched her skin.

There was no pain in her body. In fact she found herself to be unbelieveably comfortable with only a slight ache in her legs. Besides that she could almost fool herself into believing that the whole situation had been one horrific nightmare she was just waking up from. The familiar sound of the TV reached her ears and she could hear voices in the kitchen.

"...Dad?" Her voice was broken and quiet, shattering the calm serenity that filled her room.

Relief filled her eyes when she opened her and and confirmed that she was home. It was mid morning and the sun was shining brightly, its golden rays welcoming her back into her world with open arms. She was unable to keep the smile from her face, unable to stop the tears from falling.

She was finally home. Her nightmare was over and she was safe. The pain was gone and her wounds had healed and gone away.

Slowly, she eased herself from the bed and stood. Her muscles strained against the sudden use and occasionally threatened to give out as she took a few shaky steps towards the door. Her limbs were struggling to cope with the exercise after several months in a coma but she delighted in her freedom.

The stairs were a little trickier. She had to cling to the banister and ease herself down one step at a time, making slow progress. She thought it took her at least fifteen minutes to make it to the bottom.

The voices came from the kitchen, all of them happy and lighthearted. She could pick out Tifa's voice and the voice of her Father but she couldn't remember the names of the other members in her Father's team. The kitchen door was pushed ajar so no one saw her walk up to the kitchen. No one even noticed her push the door open.

For a few seconds she was unnoticed. She watched them tease each other playfully, watched them eat and bicker and chatter and plan. None of them had a care in the world and it pleased her greatly to see her Father smile at someone other than her.

"Taylor!" Tifa noticed her first, rushing to her side and hugging her gently to welcome her, "How are you feeling?"

For a moment she didn't speak. She gazed around the room, looking at each smiling face and the foor and looked back to the barmaid.

"I'm hungry."

Everyone giggled and resumed their chatter while Tifa guided the girl to her Father. The teen collapsed on her Father, hugging him as tight as she could possibly manage in spite of her weakened state and buried her face in his shoulder. He closed his arms around her and they clung to each other as if afraid that the moment would fade and they'd be torn apart again.

Taylor cried. Pain, anguish, relief and love surged from her in the form of tears, soaking her Father's shoulder. They poured uncontrollably from her, drawing choked sobs that shook her whole body. Months of pent up emotion spilled from her in the space of half an hour until she was left exhausted but feeling lighter.

She sat up and Vincent wiped her tears away before planting a soft kiss on his forehead. He looked relieved to see her up and mobile again.

"Taylor... I am so glad you are awake. I was beginning to worry that you would not wake." His voice was low, barely a whisper, making the conversation soley between them.

"Thank you... for cming for me. I thought I would die...I thought that room would be my tomb."

Vincent hugged her again and she curled into a ball so he could cradle her like a baby. He kissed the top of her head and started to stroke her hair while she ate. Taylor couldn't remember a happier time.

...

Vincent watched Taylor as she tied her hair back. She was in a swim suit, every scar on show and seeming to glow under the flurescent light. The pool itself was empty. Vincent had an extention built on the house and a pool installed. It was being used for Taylor to build her muscle tone again.

She had steadily put on weight and was looking healthier than she had since she arrived. Her muscles still needed work but she was close to being back to normal. Her left arm was also getting stronger. She had surpised him by regaining use of it quicker than he had expected and it was slowly becoming a mobile limb as opposed to a scarred mess.

"Are you ready?" He asked, and she turned to smiled up at him with a nod. She easily rose from the bench and walked to the poolside before divebombing into the water. Vincent smiled and sat in a chair in the corner with a book on his lap.

He was simply there as a life guard. He was only there in case she got tired and into trouble and was there to dive in and retrieve her; just in case.

Even he could admit that he was being a little over protective but he was terrified that he'd loose her again. Guilt weighed heavily on his mind from the entire ordeal. He blamed himself for her kidnapping and the torture she endured. He knew everything. They had had a meal out where she had recounted the story to him. It broke his heart and tore him to pieces to know that she had a story similar to his. It was what he had tried to avoid ever since learning he even had a daughter.

But, he reasoned, it had made her stronger. Unlike he had, she had dealt with it well and come to terms with it quicker than he. With the right support she had picked herself up, dusted herself down and carried on.

Her relationshio with Reno had bloomed. They had grown even closer and the Turk had been fundamental in her recovery. Things had gotten rough. She had been close to throwing in the towel and giving up but Reno had offered his hand and eased her along.

While Vincent wasn't overly comfortable with the idea of his daughter dating a Turk, he wasn't going to stop her and break her heart. Reno made her happy; and who was Vincent to deny that?

...

The resteraunt was filled with muted chatter and clinking of cutlery. Vincent and Taylor sat opposite each other, both drinking the finest wine on the menu. They were waiting for one other, who was twenty five minutes late. Vincent was getting agitated.

"He'll be here, Dad. He's probably just held up at work."

"I do not understand how he can bare to disapoint you."

"Dad, relax. He'll be here."

Taylor leant back and turned her gaze out the window. She wore a body hugging black dress which plunged low at the front, her hair curled and tumbling over her left shoulder. A crimson bandaged disguised her left arm and the Dirge hung around her neck and glinted in the light.

Vincent and Taylor were a pair. They fought together rather than Vincent trying to sheild her from everything. He had the Dirge made, an exact replica of the one that hung from his gun now hung around her neck. He was passing his Legacy down to her and she was already becoming something of a Legend. Stories were being passed around the world of the Crimson Eyed Girl. She looked similar to Vincent and fought like him too. She was Powerful and strong and stood at Vincent Valentine's side. They were unstoppable together.

But to him, she'd always be his Little Girl. Now, she was his little one who was waiting anxiously for her boyfriend to arrive.

She swirled the wine in her glass, watching it as it turned into a deep red whirlpool and he knew she was trying to distract the tears. Reno was the one person who had wormed through her defences and was able to make her cry.

But before the tears could fall her face brightened and Reno suddenly sat down beside Taylor, repeatedly apologizing for his lateness. He sported a black eye and stitches on his forehead.

"What happened to you?!"

"I got into a scuffle...no big deal."

"Are you okay? Are you okay to be here?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm sorry I'm so late...Tseng wouldn't let me leave until I'd visited the Infirmary."

He smiled apologetically at Vincent who only stared back. He watched his daughter fuss over Reno, watched her kiss his wounds and hold his face and gaze into his eyes. He recognised their love. It was the same love he had had for Lucrecia. Breaking it would destroy both of them and Vincent was not a man to hurt them.

Reno had made her stronger and Taylor had calmed him. They complimented each other wonderfully and for the first time, Vincent smiled at them.

The meal went smoothly after Reno's late appearance. The couple showed clear love for each other in everything they did. Finally Vincent relented and accepted Reno into his world.

"Dad...we're going for a walk...Will you be okay to walk home?"

"Of course I will. Reno, make sure she gets home safely." Vincent warned. He left some Gil on the table and they left together. Taylor hugged her father goodbye and kissed his cheek before walking in the opposite direction with Reno hand in hand.


End file.
